02/19/2026
Brothers and sisters, dear friends in Christ,
Today we begin a journey: that of Lent. When you think about it, isn't Lent curious? It begins with ashes and ends with fire. Ashes are what remain after a blaze has destroyed everything. So it seems that Lent is a world turned upside down.
On this holy day of Ash Wednesday, the Church places ashes on our foreheads and reminds us that “we are dust and to dust we shall return.” These words are not meant to frighten us, but to awaken us.
Why ashes?
It is to remind us that every time we let indifference, jealousy, selfishness, and hatred to take over, we become like a field of ruins and ashes. The ashes remind us that we do not always do the good we should do. By receiving the ashes, we agree to present ourselves before God as we are: sinners. The psalm reminds us how much we serve a merciful God. Since we have done what is wrong in his eyes, we present ourselves before God to ask him to look at us with compassionate eyes, to see the damaged part of ourselves, the part that is consumed by sin. We ask him to wash away all our faults!
In the first reading from the book of Joel, the Lord says to his people: “Return to me with all your heart.” Not with appearances, not with empty words, but with a sincere heart. God is not waiting to punish us; he is waiting to embrace us. He is “merciful and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in kindness.”
Psalm 51, a great prayer of repentance, teaches us the cry of a humble heart: “Create in me a clean heart, O God.” This is the true meaning of Lent: not sadness, but transformation. Not guilt, but healing. God can rebuild a broken heart.
Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians—which we have just heard—speaks with urgency: “Be reconciled to God... Now is the favorable time, now is the day of salvation.” Not tomorrow. Not later. Today. Conversion begins now, at this very moment.
And in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus teaches us how to live Lent: through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, but in secret, with sincerity, without ostentation. Lent is not about appearing holy, but about becoming holy.
During Lent, the words fasting, almsgiving, and deprivation come up often. We must understand that the purpose of Lent is not to deprive ourselves just for the sake of deprivation. It is a time to create a void in our hearts that will become a space to welcome God and our neighbor.
On a human level, when we negotiate for reconciliation, one of the criteria we use is sincerity. The same is true for us with God. Moreover, we cannot hide anything from God; he sees what is hidden. But he waits for us to admit our sins. When we admit our sins, God cannot resist showing us mercy.
Dear brothers and sisters, dear friends, during Lent, let us remember that God does not expect our perfection, our success, or our achievements. He expects from us a sincere heart, our return to him.
What should we do during this Lent?
Three things:
• Pray more—not with the intention of convincing God, not with long prayers or praises, but in search of a relationship with God, sometimes in silence.
• Fast sincerely — I am not asking you to deprive yourselves only of food, but also of anything that can affect the dignity with which God created us: anger, gossip, pride, etc.
• Love generously — not by offering flowers occasionally, as we did on Valentine's Day, but by forgiving as we seek God's forgiveness, by lifting someone up as we want God to lift us up.
Small gestures, done with love, change the heart.
When you come forward today to receive the ashes, do not come with fear, but with hope. The ashes remind us that life is short, but mercy is infinite. God can create something beautiful even from dust. Amen!
Rev. Jean Fils Chéry
Rector
