There are only a few days left until Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent in the Catholic liturgical calendar. The imposition of ashes is the rite that is obtained from the cremation of the branches blessed on Palm Sunday of the previous year. In the imposition of the ashes, the priest draws a cross on the forehead of the faithful, while repeating the words “Dust you are and to dust you will become”, to remind us that our final place is Heaven.
Heaven is not an end. Heaven is the daily struggle. Heaven is lived, it is not postponed…. Dust we are.
Lent in Latin means: quadragesima ‘fortieth day. Lent ends on Holy Thursday, one day before the Passion of Christ. Personally, I believe that Lent prepares us to assimilate one of the most important aspects of Christ’s passion: the daily struggle of the human condition.
The passion of Christ spins themes of the human condition regardless of culture, nation, history or religion.
Topics like:
to) Solidarity with the underprivileged. In his journey, you can see when they clean his forehead or help him carry the cross, despite being guarded by Roman soldiers; these were permissive for having something of solidarity in their measure as well.
b) Dignity in the face of adversity. Christ marches to Calvary after warning them at the last supper what would happen even in front of Judas, his traitor, and Peter who would deny him three times. His walk, heading to Calvary happens without cowardice, without guilt.
c) Loneliness before destiny. The fact that you realize that our destiny is in our hands is one of the best gifts that Jesus gives us. Once nailed to the cross, before dying he says: “Father, why did you abandon me?” in clear proof that God always gives us free will and leaves us to believe or not believe. Finally;
d) The transcendence. In the risen Christ, the daily struggle has no end, nor does he die with us. What part of us will continue to be even after our physical death?
Dear reader;
I hope that next Ash Wednesday, you start a process from your own perspective about your heaven, about your daily struggle, about how divinely wonderful our human condition is.
Grab life.
#dust