Day 1 -- Ash Wednesday -- Genesis

DAY 1 – Ash Wednesday

The Book of Genesis

The word Genesis means beginning. The creation at the beginning of Genesis is described as God creating order out of chaos. God gives structure and purpose to the material world. Please remember: this story of creation is not a scientific account. It is a theological account. If we used scientific language we might say that God the Creator initiated the Big Bang. He/She is behind it all.  But the importance of Genesis is the theological assertion that the world is good, and was created by a Good God.

On Ash Wednesday we receive the sign of ashes on the forehead to remind us that “You were made from dust, and you will return to dust” (Gen. 3.19). In doing so, we acknowledge our fragility and mortality. We remember that we are not the ultimate source of our being, and that our lives are a gift from a divine source.

Genesis tells a story (chs. 2 and 3) about humanity’s broken relationship with God. It recognizes that something is awry in the world. Our world is like Humpty Dumpty. We have had a “fall,” and our brokenness is the result. Our natural anxiety about death and security is deeper than biology. It is our spiritual condition.

Chapters 6-9 reaffirms God’s determination to bring about his goal for the world. It is as if the world’s hardware has been infected with a dangerous virus, and God has to reboot the creation through a flood, saving a few people to start over, i.e., Noah’s family.

Chapter 12 is a key passage. God calls Abraham and Sarah to leave their home and go out into the unknown with only God as their GPS. This is the call to faith. From that point on, we are all called to take the leap of faith.

God makes a covenant with Abraham and Sarah and their descendants. A covenant is an agreement, a partnership based on promises, and a relationship of being bound together. We are all meant to be partners with God. She binds us to herself. She will not let us go. We are united in a kind of spiritual marriage.

Genesis goes on to tell the stories of Hagar & Ishmael, Isaac &; Rebecca, Jacob &; Rachel, and Joseph.

When I was an active pastor and led Ash Wednesday services each year, I found the placing of ashes on the forehead with the accompanying words quite moving. Especially when I placed the ashes on the heads of someone I knew was terminally ill, and folks who were way up in years, and little children—it was difficult to say, “You are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Facing our mortality is not easy. Ash Wednesday is the most real of all Reality Shows.

Stand in front of a mirror. Take some substance and smudge it on your forehead and say to yourself, “I am dust, and to dust I shall return.” How do you feel about that?

Finish this sentence: Because I am mortal…..