I am a new driver and I enjoy driving. One of my challenges of being a driver is knowing the traffic signs. Every time I drive, I always pay attention to the traffic signs. The easiest for me to detect is the sign of U-turn. Every time I see it, I know that it allows me, if there is no cross-mark on it, to make a turn or return to the place where I come from or to another place. For me, there is a connection between traffic signs and our life as Christians. We can read or use the signs of our times/situations at that point or invite us to do something in our spiritual life. Or God can speak through secular signs for our salvation, transformation, and conversion.
Today we start our Lenten season of 40 days by receiving the Ash either on our forehead or our head, as a mark of our spiritual commitment. As we begin this event, God reminds us through today’s readings (Joel 2:12-18; 2 Cor. 5:20-6:2; Mt 6: 1-6,16-18) what we are going to do. First of all, Ash Wednesday is not only a matter of a celebration, but it is indeed a graceful moment (kayros). It is a decisive moment where we are humbly urged to take a decision whether to go "straight" or to take U-turn. If we decide to go straight then…but if we take U-turn then, we will experience the life of God. Lenten Season is a moment to recognize that sometimes in our journey we take a wrong road or lane and now we want to take U-turn to God. We should take U-turn now before things go worst. The Ash Wednesday and Lenten season is a time for us to go back to 'the place' where we come from. It is an occasion to take U-turn, conversion, transformation, and repentance.
Through Prophet Joel, the Lord says "now return to me with all your heart...rend your hearts and not your clothing...for he is gracious and merciful (2:12-13).” It is beautiful to see how God calls us to go back to Him. It is the present time (now), not tomorrow or any other day that we should return to him, because God, our Father does not want to see us, His children, suffer from evil deeds. Our “Yes” to the invitation for our urgent repentance is the key for us to fully experience communion with God, others, and even our-self. In other words, God imperatively directs us to take this decisive time to return to Him. Saint Paul says " As God’s co-workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain”. For he adds “In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation (2 Cor 6:1-2).
Furthermore, our God calls us in this time to lean to him wholeheartedly and rend our hearts but not our clothing. Remember that, a genuine conversion, first of all, should take place in our heart. Ash Wednesday and Lenten Season should bring about interior/inner renewal/conversion in each one of us, and it is manifested in our performance of good deeds. Any performance of good deed that does not come from inner renewal is probably just a show-off or contains a hidden agenda. Jesus Christ indeed goes against it and calls it a hypocritical act (cf Mat 6-1-6, 16-18).
Some years ago, in Indonesia, our president mandated a "Mental Revolution", a movement to change the way of thinking, working, and attitude of Indonesians. Probably our president realized that in order to live peacefully and prosperously in our multicultural country, we Indonesians, first of all, should have a mental revolution based on our state ideology (Pancasila). I think during our Lenten season, we should also have the mental revolution or more than that inner renewal/conversion - metanoia. We need to take U-turn based on the mercy and compassion of Jesus. It is not because of his judgment or anger upon us that makes us take a U-turn to Him but because He is gracious and merciful. This image of God helps us to ponder in our Lenten reflection that our motivation for doing penance, prayer, and charity is not due to fear of God's anger, punishment, eternal damnation/hell, but because of God’s mercy.
Moreover, we know very well about the tripod of Lenten Season which is: prayer, fasting, and charity. First of all, Prayer is the foundation of our spiritual and secular life and indeed helps us to take U-turn to God. It nurtures our being to become a ‘Christ-like person’. Without formal or informal prayer (contemplation), our good deeds are just the performance of our interest but not the will of God. We sometimes experience the absence of God in our prayer life but that does not mean we are not connected with Him. Second, Fasting is an expression of repentance for our sins. It helps us to realize our dependence on God and brings about conversion. Our fasting can be in both spiritual form (ex: gossip, saying bad words, etc) and material form (not eating- abstinence).
Third, Charity is the expression of our inner renewal which must bring benefit for others. Remember, we experience our God in an existential and concrete way because through Jesus God took our flesh to dwell among us. Thus, people expect to experience Him in flesh, skin, and bones. To be a Christ-ian person (Lat, personare; to sound through; play a role) is to let Christ or God act and speaks through our flesh, bones and skin. May the Ash we receive become a sign of our commitment to take a U-turn to God. Amen.
