Rending Hearts

Joel 2:1-2, 12-17, Psalm 51:1-17, 2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10, Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Ash Wednesday, March 1, 2006

Heritage Congregational Church, Madison, WI

Today is Ash Wednesday. It is the beginning of the Lenten Season, forty days and six Sundays. During this time we walk with Jesus toward the Jerusalem and the Cross, and from the Cross to the Resurrection. We are given forty days to examine our Spiritual selves for the purpose of growing toward a right relationship with God.

Why Ashes? In ancient Israel, ashes served as a forceful reminder of the pervasiveness of human sin and the inevitability of death, of all that is burned out and wasted, of what is no longer. Ashes therefore became a symbol of grief and mourning. How often have we read in an Old Testament passage about the tearing of garments and the putting on of ashes in times of grief?

In the Christian Church ashes are symbol of our own sinful mortality and a warning of Jesus passion and death. When we put on ashes it is an act of public penitence saying we accept God’s reconciliation. The ashes on the forehead are a visible symbol, an external act of penitence. They show we belong to Christ. What we acknowledge today with the ashes on our foreheads is the acceptance of God’s grace as an ongoing practice. It is not something done just once and then it is over and we are set for life. The need for reconciliation is continual part of the Christian life.

All of our readings this evening speak of penitence as a means of repentance, of turning toward God. One scholar I read called repentance a revisioning of reality. We change our vision when we repent, turning from the world toward God. In all our readings this repentance is shown by both external acts of penitence as well as internal acts. In them all, we are invited to begin the journey anew this Lenten season.

In Joel we have a very liturgical book, much of it composed for use in religious ceremonies. And right away at the beginning of today’s passage we hear the warning of an alarm bell. It says we cannot save ourselves and must turn to God, that we are powerless and in need of God’s mercy. It is a call to crisis, summons to emergency, the language is very militaristic here with mention of armies and battles. The external acts of penitence listed in Joel are fasting, weeping, mourning, gathering for worship and offering prayer. The internal act is that of tearing your heart like a garment of mourning. The total community called to participate, those of all ages, from the eldest to the nursing child. And, you are all to interrupt whatever you are doing. This call is of great urgency. Even if you are in the middle of getting married, stop what you are doing and heed God’s call.

The text implies that when we engage in the rituals and practice of penitence we are affected positively by the break in the normal pattern of life. What is offered is a visible way to observe and display allegiance to God. Return to God, the text implores, because God is good, God is worth binding the self to. There is also the promise that if we engage in repentance God will respond mercifully. So, be intentional about your religious practice. Don’t go about your business as usual. Respond in a way that is congruent with God’s character. Repent and turn in order to live, or choose to die.

In the Psalm we have a classic. The psalmist throws himself open to God’s mercy. He lays himself open for God to respond. He acknowledges that he himself has shattered his relationship with God, resulting in separation, when what God intended was that the relationship be warm and intimate. Again internal and external changes are sought after. The psalmist offers true penitence. He seeks a new life and wants to be changed. More than anything is his desire to have a deepened relationship, a right relationship with God. The psalmist wants to be a new creation. The psalmist lays bare the soul. He rends his heart. What is at the center of this psalm is the transformation of the psalmist.

Matthew speaks of the way in which we practice our piety. Jesus says that it is a matter only between us and God. God knows our hearts, Jesus says. Have we given our hearts? He speaks of the three practices found in Jewish writings, alms, prayer and fasting. When a person chose to engage in these practices it was an indication that they had gone beyond the requirements of the law. Some people do these things to be seen, Jesus says. Did you notice that the word hypocrites is used several times? Do you know what it means in Greek? A hypocrite is an actor. Don’t do these things to be seen, Jesus says. God should be our only audience.

Still others, Jesus says, find these practices to be done so much that they are in danger of losing their meaning. They may become empty and void. But, He says, if they done with the proper spirit they are never meaningless. These practices to us are God’s gifts to build community and righteousness within the community. This is a prophetic call for reform, for engagement with God’s ongoing purposes. Jesus warns us against manipulative piety and says that God responds to piety with only one purpose—a right relationship. Where are our hearts, Jesus asks.

Rending hearts is about more than giving our heart to God. In the dictionary it says that To Rend—to tear apart or split with violence. Do more than just show me your sorrow by ripping your garments and putting on ashes, God implores! Rip open your hearts, let yourself bleed for me, show me you will give your all! That is the importance of our relationship with God. God wants our hearts to be given over, all of who we are, the center of our being, the place from which our blood flows. God invites us to change who we are and God promises to respond. We are not alone in this difficult and challenging endeavor. The one who made us is merciful and filled with endless love. Our God wants more than anything to be in right relationship with us, to have that warm and intimate relationship spoken of in the psalm that we were created for.

God’s support is continual in our lives. It is never ending, eternal. It is not a trip we take and get there. And so, every year Ash Wednesday we begin the journey again. And rending our hearts is the way we begin. In this life we are always making our way toward God, we are always growing in faith. There is always more to our relationship with God than we know. We always have more to offer God and God always has more to offer us. No matter how close we are to God, no matter how much progress we made during last year’s Lenten season, the journey continues. The act of transformation is a continuous one—and to God is it the most important thing. Amen.