Ash Wednesday is maybe the most unusual day of the year for the Church. It is not a Holy Day of Obligation, but the place is normally packed. Some who are often lax about Mass attendance are there. It is a time to try again. A time to bring ourselves closer to God. A time to return.

The first reading on Ash Wednesday is from the prophet Joel. He says the Lord tells us to “return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning.” (Joel 2:12) He then tells us to “Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the LORD, your God.” (Joel 2:12) We are told to tear open our hearts and return to the Lord. Ash Wednesday marks that return. It is the beginning of the Lenten season and marks the day of our return.

The Gospel read on Ash Wednesday speaks of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. It warns us not to pray like the hypocrites. Lent is not a time for public displays of piety. Jesus repeatedly tells his disciples that your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

Many people are motivated by receiving ashes on Ash Wednesday. I have had people who have arrived too late for my prayer service, plead with me for ashes. Some people joke that they want it because it is free, but it is a sincere way to begin the season of Lent. People want their ashes.

Ashes are a means of dwelling on our mortality, but they also represent a new start. Like the mythical phoenix, which rises from its own ashes, we begin anew.

Lent begins. I have heard it referred to as “spring training for Catholics”. It is a sign of spring.

Come and enjoy this renewal.