Today is Ash Wednesday. This of course is the day marking the start of the Lent season, where, traditionally, you forgo something common in your life for thoughts of higher importance. But I'm not going to talk about that today. Nor is this really about spiritual matters. Today I'm interested only in, well... today, Ash Wednesday. Today, folks will go to various church establishments and, following a somewhat solemn and thoughtful service, proceed to "Invoke the Ashes," meaning to have someone apply two lines of ashes on your forehead in the shape of a cross. But here's the kicker: the idea is that you leave those ashes on your forehead all day.
An ancient Hebrew custom of putting on sackcloth and pouring ashes on your head as a public showing of mourning is the impetus for this old Christian tradition. I'm not trying to institute a "Wear Burlap to Work Day," nor do I advocate dumping the ashes of last night's fire on your head before you walk out the door. What interests me in a serious sense is the aspect of the public showing. Besides being kinda itchy sometimes, that ash on your noggin tells the world what you believe. Nowadays our society is pretty non-confrontational. If you're like me you try to avoid conflict at all costs. Many with this tendency will rather keep our faith a secret from most, not vent our frustrations to those who need to know them, and will even develop a whole persona separate from what we feel inside. So what would happen if put our hearts out on our sleeves, or on our foreheads?
Well... I don't know. Despite the typical image of one who shows their true feelings, I would advocate that we're not timid about it. Beliefs can be stated not in an apologetic way but with a firm unashamed posture. I get the impression that we've sank into a PC culture in which we're afraid to say anything lest we offend, but it's so much better when we can rise above that. I've experience conversations with friends, co-workers, and family along all lines of opinion and philosophy and let me tell you, it can be exhilarating. Invoking the ashes can lead to talk much more exciting than the weather and the latest reality show.
During my last job alone I've had dialogues with a Buddhist lesbian, a Vietnam-era hippie agnostic, and devout and cross-wearing Christian (all self-proclaimed descriptions) just to name a few. Now I obviously can't agree with all of them, and honestly they didn't expect me to. Nor did I expect them to immediately jump on my own bandwagon. Despite this however, terms like "I see what you mean," "Hmm... you've got a point there," and "I didn't know about that, can you explain it?" were heard from both sides. And if I was sheepish about sharing my own faith and ideas, it doesn't say much about my confidence in them. In the same attitude I will see a lot people heading down self-destructive paths, and if they see that I'm confident enough to voice my concerns, they will feel more comfortably telling me about them. Sometimes I'll ask about the hardships of an acquaintance or co-worker and I'll get a look in response that says "Is that allowed?" Things like accountability to your fellow man seem to have long since left our societal norm. In an attempt to quell hatred, ill will, and gossip, we have inadvertently left people with a sense that we're all in it for ourselves and we can deal with our own problems.
So here's my point in general: I don't go around randomly initiating philosophical/religious debates out of the blue, but what we believe is an important part of our lives. If things like your family, your job, and your thoughts on the Middle-East are a big enough part of your life to come up in conversation, than so too should things like what you heard in church the other day or concerns about a fellow friend. Comfort zones are not easy to get out of, but when I ask somebody with a withdrawn look if there's something wrong and they say "oh, nothing" without making eye contact, I might have to endure some awkwardness to help that person. In the same note, If someone asks me if I got to sleep in this morning, neither of us should feel uncomfortable if I replied "Nah. I got up early for the Ash Wednesday service," while trying not to scratch my forehead.
