Ash Wednesday Reflection

Ash Wednesday
Lisa Boris, Chief Finance and Operations Officer

Growing up, I always looked forward to Ash Wednesday because we got to sing my (then) favorite hymn, Hosea. "Come back to me with all your heart. Don’t let fear keep us apart. Trees do bend, though straight and tall; so must we to others’ call.  Long have I waited for your coming home to me and living deeply our new life."

The first lines of the song Hosea beautifully capture the meaning of Ash Wednesday. Yesterday, we began the liturgical season of Lent, our forty-day journey of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, with a reminder: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” 

Ash Wednesday is not a Holy Day of Obligation, but rather a Holy Day of Invitation. We receive an invitation to, as we hear in today’s first reading “return to” God with our “whole hearts”.

We do this through the practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. These Lenten practices are invitations and opportunities to rid ourselves of distractions and examine our hearts so we can be people of greater love, mercy, and integrity. Amid the division, injustice, and noise of the world today, Lent calls us to true conversion and change of heart. 

The song Hosea is based on the biblical prophet Hosea. The book of Hosea uses the imagery of an unfaithful wife to remind the Israelites that God’s love for his people never fails. God did not abandon the Israelites even when they turned to idolatry and injustice, instead he longed to bring them back to into a loving relationship with Him. The same holds true for us today. God never stops calling us back even when we often fall short. We can always repent and journey back to God. 

The song continues: "the wilderness will lead you to your heart where I will speak. Integrity and justice with tenderness you shall know."

This Lent, spend some time in prayer listening to God speaking in your heart. Give generously to those in need and work to bring more love and empathy into the world through your almsgiving. Fast from selfishness, indifference, hopelessness, and judging others and focus on integrity, justice, and tenderness. 

May the ashes you received yesterday be more than just a mark on our foreheads. Let them be marks on our hearts as we begin the grace-filled, transformative journey towards Easter. ​