February 17, 2010 Ash Wednesday Joel 2:12-18; 2 Cor. 5:20-6:2; Mt. 6:1-6, 16-18 _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   Readings:    http://www.usccb.org/nab/021710.shtml   ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________       Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are religious disciplines that have long been cherished in many of the religions of the world. As important as they are, they are not meant to be merely public displays of personal prowess. In today’s reading from Joel, God charges us, “Rend your hearts, not your garments.” This same concern for inner integrity is clear in Jesus’ words in the Gospel: Do not blow the horn before you; do not pray in order to be noticed; do not let others know that you are fasting.   While prayer is always relevant, fasting and almsgiving have lost some of their religious significance today. Some fast in order to lose weight; others give to charities in order to claim a tax write-off. While such practices are certainly acceptable, their motivation can hardly be called religious.   All that God asks of us is that we accept his mercy, that we remember we are sinners, and repent and believe in His Son. And he asks us too that we try to practice a piety that is based on his love - instead of being motivated by thoughts of human praise or reward, that we try to show a righteousness that is based on His goodness - instead of being motivated by thoughts of demonstrating our virtue.   God has committed himself to us - and given to us a sign of that commitment - the cross.  Tonight we come to take upon ourselves that sign - we come to commit ourselves to God and the way that his Son has shown us.   Today we may have to discover new ways of appreciating fasting and almsgiving. Isaiah once wrote: “This, rather, is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; setting free the oppressed” (Is 58:6). Perhaps today our covenant with God is calling us to care more deeply for children, even those who are not our own; to show greater respect for the cultural or religious diversity within which we live; to take a more active role in church matters. Perhaps instead of giving our money to others, we are being asked to give of ourselves, of our time or of our talents.   Lent offers us a graced opportunity to re-evaluate and readjust our relationship with God. We are born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ - a hope that comes to us because of the mercy and the love of God for his people; a hope that comes because God has acted in and through Jesus to open the way to new life to all who repent and believe in the good news that he proclaimed.   <<   Previous: 6th Ordinary Sunday  | Next: 1st Sunday of Lent >>   Go Back to SERMONS (Year C)