Today is Ash Wednesday,
and in most places, today is busier than Christmas. There is no Ash Wednesday
eve, there is no vigil Mass. Everything about today is celebrated today.
And people come from
everywhere on Ash Wednesday. People who almost never come to Church will come
to church on this day. On this day they will come to the Church. They will come
to receive the mark of ashes on their foreheads. They will hear the words of invitation, the
words of instruction, and the appeal to reconciliation from the ambassadors of
Christ.
So what is different
about today? Each Sunday and each day in the celebration of the Eucharist we
hear words of invitation and instruction and an appeal to reconciliation with
God from the ambassadors of Christ Jesus.
So what is different about today?
It’s the imposition and
reception of the ashes. But it’s more than that. When Jesus started his
ministry of preaching, he echoed the words of John the Baptist, “Repent and
believe in the gospel.” And we’ve all heard that. We’ve all heard the words of
the Lord Jesus, “Repent and believe in the gospel” We’ve all heard it.
On Ash Wednesday, we
each hear it. On Ash Wednesday through the words and the hands of the
Ambassadors of Christ, the Lord Jesus says to each person, Repent and believe in
the Gospel. The invitation to life in Christ Jesus that is given to all of us,
on Ash Wednesday is given to each of us.
Repent and believe in
the Gospel. Amen.
Preached
at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, Monroe, NC
