I Need Ash Wednesday
Imagine a swarm of locusts covering our yards, parks, trees, plants, and homes. Perhaps if that occurred locally, it would be a major nuisance but not a threat to our lives considering our global supply chains and modern structures. Imagine, though, if you lived 2400 years ago in the time of Joel the prophet. There would be no way to escape disaster as the locusts infiltrated homes and consumed crops.
While many of the prophets in the Bible wrote about actual threats that would be realized (or had already been) in the form of natural disasters or military forces, Joel’s warning probably didn’t apply to anything specific; nonetheless, he felt a need to call upon the people of Judah. So he created the image of a swarm of locusts to get the attention of his listeners.
If Joel’s prophecy dates to around 350 BCE, which many biblical scholars suggest is the case (Zvi, 1155), there were no imminent threats on the horizon. The brutal invasions of the Assyrians and Babylonians had occurred in the past. The people of God were still living in occupation under the Persians, but they were no longer forced to live in exile, had rebuilt the temple in Jerusalem, and were allowed to engage in their faith practices again.
Joel was likely an educated person, and a student of the prophets. He took their writings and messages to heart. Although the Judeans had faced many challenges over the years, Joel felt that “much foretold in past prophecy [had] not yet been fulfilled.” (Achtemeier, 502) The day of the Lord was on its way, and with it the threat of damage exceeding what could be inflicted by a swarm of locusts. No one was spared from Joel’s message — he called upon the oldest and youngest members of the community, and even couples in the midst of their wedding day. All of the inhabitants of the land needed to prepare for what was coming by fasting, weeping, and returning to God with all their hearts.
Joel understood that the sum of humanity’s selfish, short-sighted behaviors posed a threat to all of the people of God. He cites abuse of the land by those “who take more than they need” (Braaten, 156) as part of the problem, and certainly that strikes a chord with us today. Our collective behaviors — especially of those who live in affluent countries — are leading to a reckoning. The results will exceed the damage inflicted by a locust swarm, and imagination is not required to envision how they will be realized; that realization is already underway.
The effects of global warming and the resulting change in climate are widespread across the Earth and its people. Extreme heat. Extreme cold. Tornadoes. Hurricanes. Tsunamis. Seawater rise. Earthquakes. All of these things happened before, but never in human history to such an intense degree within such a short period of time. These are all very visible occurrences that have been caused or at least exacerbated by our policies and practices.
Add to this the more isolated effects of the pollution we create, which include lower cognitive performance, mental illness in children, dementia in adults, premature births, and respiratory diseases. Certainly rates of those conditions will continue to increase, as will the number of climate refugees, and others suffering from water and food scarcity. War and crime will likely also increase due to the strain produced by all of the above.
How did we get here? You might be able to find some villains along the way, but at this point this is an us problem. Look at the top sources of greenhouse gas emissions, and you’re likely to find a practice you’ve participated in, funded through a purchase, or sponsored through an investment (The Carbon Almanac Network, 66). And those of us in the United States are especially complicit, having emitted more CO2 since 1960 than any other nation.
Sadly, the suffering that results from our pursuit of comfort and convenience will increase with each generation, and will be especially acute for the less affluent, those described in Matthew as “the least of these.”
One wonders what Joel would tell us if he were to prophecy today. In her interpretation of the scripture, Laurie Braaten writes that “the text clearly indicates how the fate of Earth and humans are intertwined, and how the role of human repentance is critical in alleviating the ecological crisis” (Braaten, 156) That being the case, perhaps Joel’s message wouldn’t differ much from what he wrote 2400 years ago.
Returning to the scripture, time passes between the first of today’s passages, when Joel is warning about the coming day of the Lord, and the later verses, when Joel speaks of the experience of returning to the Holy One. The people have heard his prophecy, and have been reminded that “God is gracious and loves as a mother, slow to anger, and abounds in faithful love, and reluctant to impose harm.”
There was cause for lament and mourning, just as there will always be cause for lament and mourning; scripture from the wisdom tradition makes that clear. In the context of returning to God, though, lament and mourning take place in conjunction with repentance — recognition of our role in what has occurred. And our actions aren’t isolated; “mourning of the nonhuman members of Earth community serves as an example and a renewed call for humans to identify with and join them in mourning.” (Braaten, 156) Thus the people repent, mourn, and lament in communion with our Creator and the rest of creation.
Then comes a time of restoration, perhaps not exactly to what was known before, but in the case of Joel he encourages the people to be glad and rejoice. The pastures, trees, and vines which had been ravaged are green and fruitful again.
I was glad to see Pat Tillman recognized before last Sunday’s Super Bowl. He was an NFL player with a $3.6 million contract, but after the events of September 11, 2001 occurred, he set aside his career and enlisted in the army.
Sadly, he was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan, an event that was covered up to maintain public support for the war.
My feelings about the war aside, I respected Pat Tillman for his principles. Most of those who supported the war did so without cost; they themselves did not enlist, nor did their children. Pat Tillman sacrificed all that he had, even after he himself stopped believing in all aspects of the War on Terror.
Wars are never fought without cost. There are no good guys and bad guys; only perhaps less bad guys. There is always destruction of homes, always murder of civilians, always rape, always long-term environmental damage. When a country goes to war, it should account for those things, as well as the financial and reputational debt that is incurred by future generations. Sadly, those effects are rarely felt by the decision-makers.
In seminary we often referred to the idea of holding things in tension. I am a citizen of the United States, as are most of the people I know and love in the world. I believe that a country is comprised of its citizens, and that ours holds tremendous potential for good. I hold those feelings in tension with the knowledge that half of the federal taxes I pay fund wars or the threat of violence through war. Yet I still pay taxes.
I know that when I buy or use single-use plastics, I’m creating waste that ends up in oceans and makes people sick. I know that pollution from plastic production causes illness, and that it hastens climate change, which leads to increased suffering. But I still buy and use single-use plastics.
I know that when I buy gas or ride in an airplane, I’m leading to fossil fuel production and consumption. The former funds companies that resist policy and practice changes essential to slowing the climate catastrophe. The latter hastens the climate catastrophe. Yet I still buy gas and ride on airplanes.
Is there a narrow road by which one can avoid all of these things? It would include never buying gas or riding in a vehicle that consumes it, only powering your home using electricity from solar panels and windmills, never buying single-use plastics, only eating locally-produced vegan foods, composting everything, and divesting your retirement and other monies from all companies involved in war and weapons and fossil fuels. And only paying those taxes that benefit society.
Is it possible to traverse that narrow road, or do I admit at some point that even if I could, I’m still swimming in an ocean of patriarchy, racism, economic inequity, and other systemic injustices I’ve not named?
It’s too much to hold in tension. And that’s why I need Ash Wednesday.
On Wednesday I’ll receive a cross made of ash on my forehead. It’s a reminder that I come from dust, and of my mortality. It’s also a reminder that, as a human, I’ll always be complicit in systems that favor some at the expense of others.
I need Ash Wednesday because my tax dollars helped pay for the bullets that killed Pat Tillman . . . and the weapons that killed thousands of Iraqi civilians.
I need Ash Wednesday because we fail to exercise the courage required to identify and change the causes of mass shootings like the one that recently occurred at Michigan State University.
I need Ash Wednesday because, more often than not, I exercise the privilege of inaction afforded by my gender, class, race, and sexuality.
I need Ash Wednesday because many of my neighbors have spent the winter sleeping in the cold, without adequate food and water.
I need Ash Wednesday because, despite the above, I often find myself exercising judgment and self-righteousness.
I need Ash Wednesday because I need to be reminded of where I come from.
I need Ash Wednesday because I know the world does not need to be this way.
When we receive ashes, we do so individually, but at the same time we are marked as part of the worldwide community of Jesus-followers. We are acknowledging our need to turn to our Creator, who as Joel reminds us is slow to anger and reluctant to impose harm. We return to the arms of our gracious, faithful, loving Holy Mother.
When we do so, we’re reminded that we’re not alone. The seemingly overwhelming challenges of this world will eventually be completely overcome, but until that happens, we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to act in community. We are not alone in addressing climate change, war, greed, racism, sexism, violence, and intolerance. These are an affront to our Maker, and when we work together to dismantle them, we catch a glimpse of God’s kin-dom.
Yes, we come from dust, but that dust is beloved, created for a purpose, and every grain is numbered. I hope you’ll join me in recalling that as the season of Lent begins, and that the coming weeks offer an opportunity to remember, reflect, and return.
Thanks be to God.
Amen.
Works Referenced
Achtemeier, Elizabeth. “Joel.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume V. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.Gafney, Wilda C. A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, Year W. New York City: Church Publishing, 2021.
Ben Zvi, Ehud. “Joel.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Braaten, Laurie J. “God’s Good Land.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Bible and Ecology, edited by Hilary Marlow and Mark Harris. New York City: Oxford University Press, 2022.
The Carbon Almanac Network. The Carbon Almanac: It’s Not Too Late. Edited by Seth Godin. Penguin Random House, 2022.
Gafney, Wilda C. A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, Year W. New York City: Church Publishing, 2021.
Krakauer, Jon. Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman. New York City: Anchor Books, 2009.
Mills, Mary E. “City as Sustainable Environment.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Bible and Ecology, edited by Hilary Marlow and Mark Harris. New York City: Oxford University Press, 2022.
Simkins, Ronald A. “Joel.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
