There is no subtlety or ambiguity to Ash Wednesday. It seems that we are reminded that Lent is a season of penitence and reflection at every turn, and that we are to approach this season with humility. "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." Ash Wednesday is a remarkable reminder that the hierarchies we create are just that: created. We are all made from dust and will one day return to dust.
Despite this humble beginning, Lent was always a bit of a competition when I was growing up. The week before Ash Wednesday each child in our Sunday School class would report what they planned to give up for the Lenten season. The fasts ranged from watching television to consuming sugary treats. The more extreme the fast the more respect the child seemed to get. But there was also an understanding that the extreme fasts were most likely to fail. I mean, what if you had to attend a birthday party during Lent and you gave up desserts?
Today's passage reminds us that faith is not built upon self-righteous fasts alone. Let's face it: in the fifth grade we did not give up the things we loved because we wanted to come closer to God, we did it to impress. We don't know if the Pharisee fasted twice a day and gave a tenth of his income to impress his friends, but we do know that he considered himself above the rest for doing so. He even thanks God for not making him like other people. And yet, of the two people who entered the temple that day, Jesus chose to lift up the tax collector, the one who dedicated his life to the state rather than religious law. We do not know if the tax collector fasted or tithed, all we know is that he humbled himself before God and asked for mercy.
Jesus does not tell this parable to his disciples to criticize those who follow the law or ridicule Pharisees. Jesus tells this story to warn those who "trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt." The tax collector is justified because he humbles himself before God and acknowledges that he is a sinner in need of God's saving grace. The tax collector knows that he is merely dust. He knows that he depends upon God's mercy - a lesson the Pharisee has forgotten.
As we walk this journey of faith together, we do well to remember this parable. Rather than the Pharisee and the tax collector who stand alone in their respective prayers, may we stand together and affirm our humanity and dependence on a merciful God. So whatever practice you adopt this Lenten season, I pray that you feel God's mercy wash over you. I pray that the humility the Lenten season calls forth brings you closer to God and neighbor.
Carrie Cabush
Seminarian
