Assistant Dean of Identity | Mr Chris Zammit
The ashes – a symbol of the fragility of our earth
As we enter the second week of Lent, we continue to be reminded of the commitment made on Ash Wednesday in the words heard when receiving the ashes: Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel. Throughout these six weeks in the lead up to Easter, we are called to be the best we can be, through prayer, fasting and almsgiving. It is a time of reflection and a chance to focus on the things that form us as a faith community.
The ashes distributed during last week’s liturgies are a reminder of our mortality and the sorrow of sin that comes with our humanity. During the forty days in the desert, Jesus himself was tempted by sin and asked to show his power and strength through divine works. Instead, through his humanity, he chose humility – one of the three pillars of the Terrace Gentleman. We too are asked to be humble in our actions with each other and in the choices we make during this time of sacrifice.
The symbol of the ashes is particularly prominent as we reach the end of the most devastating of Summers, with historic loss of land, animal species and human life due to bushfires right across this beautiful country. The ashes on the foreheads of our Terrace Family came from the burnt lands in the surrounding areas of Maroon Dam, a special place in the journey of faith and formation of the Terrace student. They are a reminder of the fragility of all life and a call to do all we can to protect our environment.
Pope Francis describes sin as our wilful ignorance of the holiness of our planet, and for anything we do to hurt or diminish the planet in any way. Francis is unequivocal. It is sinful to diminish the planet in any way.
He reiterates in his encyclical Laudato Si – Care for our Common Home
We must regain the conviction that we need one another, that we have a shared responsibility for others and the world, and that being good and decent are worth it. We have had enough of immorality and the mockery of ethics, goodness, faith and honesty. It is time to acknowledge that light-hearted superficiality has done us no good. When the foundations of social life are corroded, what ensues are battles over conflicting interests, new forms of violence and brutality, and obstacles to the growth of a genuine culture of care for the environment.
Listening to the news this week, one might think that we are approaching the end times; from a global pandemic to a struggling economy and the fear and chaos that follows. However, Lent provides us with hope that as a Christian community, the actions we each take and the choices we make each day in the journey from sin to love, can unite us in faith and make real change in our world.