Bishop Michael celebrates Ash Wednesday Mass for Students.
“Reflecting on the three secrets of the Ash Wednesday Gospel we have just heard, I couldn’t help but be struck by the call therein for each of us to journey inward: a call to ‘shush’ the distractions of our everyday lives and to focus on what lies at the core of our being; to concentrate on what is going on in the depths of our hearts.” – Bishop Michael
“Your almsgiving must be secret, and your Father, who sees all that is done in secret, will reward you.”
“Pray to your Father, who is in that secret place, and your Father, who sees all that is done in secret, will reward you.”
“No one will know that you are fasting except your Father, who sees all that is done in secret, and your Father, who sees all that is done in secret, will reward you.” (Mt 6)
Three times in the Gospel we have just heard, the idea of secrecy surfaces: almsgiving in secrecy, praying in secret, fasting without anyone else knowing.
Maybe it is my inquisitive nature, but the idea of secrecy always leaves me a little uneasy. Perhaps it is also the fact that it is not easy to keep something secret. It is not easy to have to keep something secret, either. Secrecy has a certain aura about it. It is often reserved for deep-down things that are sometimes good—sometimes bad. That which is to be kept secret is normally important, something that touches us deeply.
Reflecting on the three secrets of the Ash Wednesday Gospel we have just heard, I couldn’t help but be struck by the call therein for each of us to journey inward: a call to ‘shush’ the distractions of our everyday lives and to focus on what lies at the core of our being; to concentrate on what is going on in the depths of our hearts.
Now, no matter what age we are, or no matter what stage in life we find ourselves at, I suspect that if we are honest with ourselves, we will find our inner thoughts wrestling with a lot of questions: What is life? What is it all about? Why was I born? Why do I die? Where am I going? Why is life so hard? Why are there so many questions and so few answers? Am I of any significance in the grand scale of things? How should I live this one chance of life I have been given? Most of us do our best to avoid such questions—to push them to the side. We are all the time whistling in the dark. For some of us, it is easier to ignore them. For more, it is the fear that if we were to answer them—things would have to be different. We are not quite ready for that just yet.
Many of you will know that the word Gospel means “Good News”! For in the person and message of Jesus, Christians find “Good News” that gives us a firm direction when faced with these deep-down questions of life—if only we would listen, if only we would hear, if only we would take it to heart. Perhaps this is the secret at the heart of all the secrets spoken of in the Gospel today. Perhaps this Ash Wednesday, and throughout the forty days or so of Lent that open out before us, this is what we are being called to focus on most of all. What role does the profound wisdom of Christianity play in my life? “What role could it play in my life?” If I really gave it even a bit more thought, a bit more time, a bit more space, could it perhaps bring some sort of clarity, some sort of consolation, some sort of direction and purpose to who I am, to what I am doing, and to where I am going in the often complicated, often difficult but also wonderful journey of life that I am on?
Fasting, giving to those less well-off, praying, giving up or taking on this or that for Lent are all ways of helping us make this journey to that secret place deep within ourselves. A journey that, if embarked on with serious intent, could make a difference to our life and our living. Let us pray that this Lent—Lent 2026—neither you nor I will let this life-changing opportunity pass us by. Amen.