Ash Wednesday 

   “you are dust and to dust you shall return.” (Gen 3: 19) 

   Ash Wednesday begins the forty days of lent.  A period of fasting and sorrow for our sins and shortcomings.  A time to seek atonement and renew our relationship with God.  Confession of our sins is expected during this period and an effort to amend our lives to live more in line with that of a people of God.  Even though we each are aware that we will continue to sin, we use this time to try to do better at avoiding sin.

   The ashes we receive are to remind us that we too are from dust, and we shall return to dust.  The words spoken are the same as those spoken by God to Adam and Eve, “Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return.”

   I’m always saddened by the number of those who come to receive their ashes yet are rarely, if ever, in Mass on a regular basis.  I’m saddened, yet hopeful that maybe this is the year, and this is the Ash Wednesday that will touch their heart and bring them home to God.

   As I approach the altar to receive the ashes I become more aware of my mortality; this life will end at a time I do not know.  The prayers, the sacrifices, the atonement we make during this solemn time are meant to help us recognize and prepare ourselves for that certain departure from this world.  There is no greater preparation that we can undertake than to prepare our soul for eternity.

   Let’s make the most of our Lenten observance and try our best to better our relationship with our Lord and Savior.  For we are dust and to dust we shall return.