Reading 1 Jl 2:12-18
Even now, says the LORD,
return to me with your whole heart,
with fasting, and weeping, and mourning;
Rend your hearts, not your garments,
and return to the LORD, your God.
For gracious and merciful is he,
slow to anger, rich in kindness,
and relenting in punishment.
Perhaps he will again relent
and leave behind him a blessing,
Offerings and libations
for the LORD, your God.
Blow the trumpet in Zion!
proclaim a fast,
call an assembly;
Gather the people,
notify the congregation;
Assemble the elders,
gather the children
and the infants at the breast;
Let the bridegroom quit his room
and the bride her chamber.
Between the porch and the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep,
And say, "Spare, O LORD, your people,
and make not your heritage a reproach,
with the nations ruling over them!
Why should they say among the peoples,
'Where is their God?'"
Then the LORD was stirred to concern for his land
and took pity on his people.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 51:3-4, 5-6ab, 12-13, 14 and 17
R. (see 3a) Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
For I acknowledge my offense,
and my sin is before me always:
"Against you only have I sinned,
and done what is evil in your sight."
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
A clean heart create for me, O God,
and a steadfast spirit renew within me.
Cast me not out from your presence,
and your Holy Spirit take not from me.
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
Give me back the joy of your salvation,
and a willing spirit sustain in me.
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
Reading 2 2 Cor 5:20-6:2
Brothers and sisters:
We are ambassadors for Christ,
as if God were appealing through us.
We implore you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to God.
For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin,
so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.
Working together, then,
we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.
For he says:
In an acceptable time I heard you,
and on the day of salvation I helped you.
Behold, now is a very acceptable time;
behold, now is the day of salvation.
Gospel Mt 6:1-6, 16-18
Jesus said to his disciples:
"Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms,
do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
"When you pray,
do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room,
close the door, and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
"When you fast,
do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast,
anoint your head and wash your face,
so that you may not appear to be fasting,
except to your Father who is hidden.
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you."
Meditation: Joel 2:12-18
Ash Wednesday
Let the bridegroom quit his room, and the bride her chamber. (Joel 2:16)
This is quite a striking image for the beginning of Lent! What could be so important? Why would Joel call newlyweds to leave their honeymoon suites and rush to the Temple for prayer? It seems that a plague of locusts was decimating the crops and bringing Israel to the brink of a national disaster. So in the face of such a calamity, Joel called everyone to join the priests in prayers of repentance and intercession.
Joel linked the locust plague to the people’s spiritual state. He saw that many had stopped following the Lord and were adopting the ways of the world. The locusts were not just a natural disaster; God was using them to wake his people up. And it worked: The people gathered in prayer and repentance. And in response, God restored them and gave them a bounteous harvest.
This Ash Wednesday, God is issuing a serious call to all of us. Will we allow him to search us and show us the areas in our lives that need to be cleansed? Will we gather in prayer and turn our hearts to the Lord more fully? Sin is a serious threat. Like a locust, it has the potential to destroy so much that we hold dear.
But there is hope! Just as he did for the people in Joel’s time, God stands ready this Lent to forgive us and restore us. As St. Paul tells us in today’s second reading, now is the time of salvation! Today, this very season, is a time of grace.
So heed Joel’s call! Join your brothers and sisters in prayer and fasting this Lent. Make this season a special time of prayer and devotion to the Lord. We can see measurable changes in our lives over the next six weeks if we come together and pray.
“Jesus, I want to be made whole this Lent. Thank you for this season of healing, restoration, and hope. Come, Lord, and restore me from the inside out.”
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