Following a different path

At his General Audience today (Ash Wednesday), the Holy Father based his reflections on the two texts which may be used during the imposition of ashes.

Today, Ash Wednesday, marks the beginning of the Church’s Lenten journey towards Easter. Lent reminds us, as Saint Paul exhorts, “not to accept the grace of God in vain” (cf. 2 Cor 6:1), but to recognize that today the Lord calls us to penance and spiritual renewal. This call to conversion is expressed in the two formulae used in the rite of the imposition of ashes. The first formula – “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel” – echoes Jesus’s words at the beginning of his public ministry (cf. Mk 1:15). It reminds us that conversion is meant to be a deep and lasting abandonment of our sinful ways in order to enter into a living relationship with Christ, who alone offers true freedom, happiness and fulfilment. The second, older formula – “Remember, man, that you are dust and to dust you shall return” – recalls the poverty and death which are the legacy of Adam’s sin, while pointing us to the resurrection, the new life and the freedom brought by Christ, the Second Adam.

He added that "conversion means changing the direction of the path of our lives."

As we enter this holy season, I hope to consider my own path...is Christ at the end of the path as its goal? Do I take the most direct route? the easiest route? am I even on the right road?

This also reminds us that the goal of Lent is not simply self-denial, but rather dying to self and rising in Christ. Our Lenten disciplines teach and express our dependence on God and our willingness to leave all behind to follow him. We don't simply "give up" something for forty days...we seek to condition ourselves so that when Easter arrives we may rejoice in the Savior--Risen and Radiant--renewed in our baptism into Christ, carrying his light, clothed in his glory and waiting eagerly for his return in glory!