The Church of St. Paul and Incarnation, Jersey City NJ
February 17, 2021
Ash Wednesday
Joel 2:1-2, 12-17
Psalm 103
2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10
Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21
God Breathes New Life Into Our Dust
As you know only too well, for almost a year now, we have been forced to adapt to the pandemic – and this week is no exception.
In normal times, last night we would have squeezed into Carr Hall for our big Mardi Gras party. We would have stuffed ourselves with pancakes and other delicious treats. Some of us would have sipped a little sangria. We would have enjoyed talented entertainers, and, who knows, maybe even a return engagement of Virgil the Magician!
And, of course, we would have cheered on our kids in the always hotly competitive pancake-flipping contest.
And then today the mood would have become much more somber.
Lent would have begun with services in church throughout the day.
And, a few of us would have spent some time over at a windswept McGinley Square offering “Ashes to Go.”
The ashes that we usually receive, either in church or on the street corner, are meant to remind us of our mortality – a call to remember that we are dust, and to dust we shall return – a call to remember that the there is no time to waste.
But, as I mentioned in my Sunday sermon, we don’t really need that reminder this year, do we?
We have been well aware of our “dustiness.”
Each time we put on a mask before venturing out into the world – each time we board a bus or go to the supermarket – each time we cough or feel a little warm or a little clammy or when our food isn’t quite as tasty as we expected – each time a family member, friend, neighbor, or parishioner has been diagnosed, we have been reminded of our mortality, reminded that we are dust.
Not to mention when Covid has taken the lives of people we know and love.
I think that we can manage just fine without ashes this year.
So, without ashes, but well aware of our “dustiness,” today we begin the holy season of Lent – the forty days when we are called to sacrifice, to give up something, to take on something, to prepare for the overflowing joy of Easter.
Some have rightly said that over the past eleven months we’ve already given up quite a bit, thank you very much, and many of us have taken on just about all that we can manage.
So, if we usually look at Lent as a time of suffering then it sure feels like it’s been Lent all year long.
But, you know, maybe the pandemic, maybe this hard year, gives us a chance to remember, or to really learn, what this holy season is all about.
Lent is never supposed to be about suffering for the sake of suffering.
My goodness, life is hard enough, even without a pandemic, right?
And, although we put away the “A” word until Easter, Lent is never supposed to be about gloom and doom.
I mean, we need all the joy we can get, right?
No, Lent – the ashes, the sacrifices, the taking on, the preparation – it’s all meant to draw our attention back to God.
Lent is meant to help us answer God’s call: “Return to me with all your heart.”
God is always calling to us - always waiting for us - always ready to breathe new life into our dust.
St. Paul understood that better than most.
Paul knew great suffering in his life – his message was frequently ridiculed and rejected – the little Christian communities that he started often went right off the rails as soon as he left – he was sometimes imprisoned and tortured – and, yes, he had a lot of his own issues, too – and yet, and yet, God would not let go of him, no matter what.
After each setback, God would breathe new life into Paul’s dust, giving him the strength to go on.
So, Paul knew what he was talking about when he called on the Corinthians - when he calls on us today - to be reconciled to God – to fall into the arms of God - to let God hold on to us through the trials of today and whatever tomorrow brings.
And Paul also knew that there’s no time to waste.
As he writes to the Corinthians, “See, now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation!”
So, yes, it’s Ash Wednesday - without ashes.
Yes, it’s the first day of Lent.
Just like every Lent, we are invited to confess our sins, to sacrifice, to take on some new way of serving others.
But, if you’ve already given up enough and can’t take on even one more thing – it’s OK. It really is.
It will be a beautiful and holy Lent if we just remember that we are dust.
But not just any old dust.
We are dust that is loved by God.
And the God who raised Jesus from the dead on the first Easter morning is always ready to breathe new life into our dust.
Amen.
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