For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
As a father pities his children,
So the Lord pities those who fear Him.
For He [a]knows our frame;
He remembers that we are dust. (Psalm 103: 11-14)
In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread
Till you return to the ground,
For out of it you were taken;
For dust you are,
And to dust you shall return.” (Genesis 3: 19)
Dust in the wind. All we are is dust in the wind. (Kansas)
This year, Valentine’s Day and Ash Wednesday collided in all of their respective glory. I was really uncomfortable with this collision of ideals. Valentine’s Day is supposed to be a decadent celebration for lovers and Ash Wednesday, on the other hand, heralds the beginning of Lent, a time of reflection and repentance leading to Good Friday. On Valentine’s Day we throw all caution to the wind, eat all the chocolate, drink all the wine and celebrate the great love we have for someone. If we have someone to do this with. Ash Wednesday is part of an internal, solitary journey of austerity where we ponder our mortality and consider sacrifice and loss.
I lamented the difficulty I was having with the two days colliding to a colleague who rather glibly said to me “Oh but its all about God’s love”. To which I retorted “Yeah, but don’t eat your chocolate”.
O.k. – again, not one of my more stellar clergy moments.
But truthfully, so many of our necessary and important religious observances have been co-opted by glib, superficial “happy clappy” celebrations.
And, on top of it, celebrations like Valentines Day, Family Day and Thanksgiving, well, – even if they have their roots in religious holidays (not Family Day, I realize), have become places that are not ‘happy clappy’ and joyful, but instead have become places that cause a great deal of pain and sorrow for many in our communities. Valentines Day feels awful to someone who’s in the process of watching their key romantic relationship break down, or who are single and lonely, or even single and satisfied. We’ve tried to make Valentine’s Day ‘acceptable’ with the introduction of things like “Galentine’s” parties; but what if you don’t have friends or community around to do this kind of things with each other? Family Day? Well – what if you don’t have a family? I know that we say things like “Chosen Family”, or “Families come in all shapes and sizes”, but what about the isolated person with no one around and no one that they can even ‘choose’ as family? Thanksgiving ‘feasts and meals with ‘loved ones’ becomes places of great disappointment when you can’t afford groceries, and don’t have people around to even share a meal with.
We’ve marketed days and events to strengthen purchasing and decadence, and looked in the other direction when so many others are basically.
Just left in the dust.
And that, I think is why we need Ash Wednesday so badly. You see, Ash Wednesday starts with the idea that all of us are left in the dust. This is our beginning, and this is our end. And it is this dust that we collectively mark our foreheads with to remind us that we are no more than the brokenness of the corners of life. We are no more than each other; we are no better than each other.
And God forms us from this dust. This collective dust. This community dust. God uses this dust to create life; to create us.
And although sobering – its also worth celebrating.
And so, my dear Bethel Friends. While Ash Wednesday may be about God’s Love, as my colleague so glibly pronounced, its also far more than that. It’s also the day where we realize that we are all the same in God’s eyes, and that none of us are any better than the ‘least of these’. I hope that you will take a few moments today and recognize your own brokenness and reflect on how it is these dark and dusty places that we share with all of humanity: not the places of sentimental ‘happy clappy’ celebrations.
Blessings today, and remember you are loved.
~Rev Lynne