{"id":24104,"date":"2026-02-19T09:11:44","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T14:11:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.franciscansusa.org\/?p=24104"},"modified":"2026-02-19T09:11:44","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T14:11:44","slug":"ash-wednesday-homily","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.franciscansusa.org\/es\/ash-wednesday-homily\/","title":{"rendered":"Ash Wednesday 2026: The Jubilee of St. Francis"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ash Wednesday 2026: The Jubilee of St. Francis
\nHomily by friar Mario Serrano, OFM Conv.<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you are still wondering which penitential practices to undertake during Lent, Pope Leo has asked us to consider listening and fasting. That is to make room for the Word and to listen to the cry of the poor, \u201cthroughout human history, constantly challenges our lives, societies, political and economic systems, and, not least, the Church.\u201d And to fast by \u201crefraining from words that offend and hurt our neighbor. Let us begin by disarming our language, avoiding harsh words and rash judgment, refraining from slander and speaking ill of those who are not present and cannot defend themselves… In this way, words of hatred will give way to words of hope and peace.\u201d (Message of the Holy Father Leo XIV for Lent 2026<\/a>)<\/p>\n

This year, we Franciscans celebrate\u00a0the Jubilee of St. Francis (from January 10, 2026, to January 10, 2027). It is a special holy year proclaimed by Pope Leo XIV to mark the 800th anniversary of St. Francis of Assisi’s embrace of Sister Death. Francis sought to live and practice what we will hear as ashes are put on our foreheads: \u201cRepent and believe in the Gospel.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Today, as we begin anew, Ash Wednesday is not a day of condemnation but one of clarity. The ashes traced on our foreheads speak a quiet truth: we are dust, yet beloved dust. Mortal, fragile, fleeting, yes, and still held in God\u2019s love and mercy. The Church does not place ashes on us to shame us, but to awaken hope in us.<\/p>\n

\u201cRepent and believe in the Gospel.\u201d<\/strong> Repentance is often misunderstood. It is not mere regret, not spiritual self-criticism, not a gloomy obsession with failure. In the Gospel, repentance means\u00a0returning, that is, turning our minds, our hearts, our whole lives back toward God. It is the courage to say:\u00a0Lord, I want to walk toward You again. <\/em>And this year, as we live the grace of the Jubilee connected to\u00a0St. Francis of Assisi, that call us to take a particularly Franciscan tone to our Lenten journey.<\/p>\n

Francis, the poor man of Assisi, heard this same invitation in his own life. His conversion did not happen all at once in a dramatic moment but through many small surrenders and encounters. The crucifix of San Damiano speaks in a chapel falling into ruin. Francis makes room for the Word and listens. His conversion deepens as he embraces a leper with trembling love, disregarding the noise and disarming the harsh words that society and the used for \u201cthis other.\u201d Francis teaches us that repentance is not primarily about what we give up; it’s about\u00a0Who we return to.<\/p>\n

We fast, yes, and this fasting is not about dieting for holiness.\u2028We pray, yes, and our prayer is not meant to be a performance.\u2028We give alms, of course, but not as a sacrifice; we give out of compassion and generosity, not for show. These are not Lenten practices we undertake to impress God. They are\u00a0pathways to deepen our love for God and our neighbor.<\/p>\n

Sin is the failure to bother to love; it is not simply rule-breaking; it is also relationship-wounding. And repentance is to move us toward healing love, Divine love.<\/p>\n

\u201cRepent and believe in the Gospel.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Notice the order. First repent. Then believe. Because it is difficult to believe the Gospel, to truly believe the Word while clinging to illusions:
\nThe illusion that we are self-sufficient.
\nThe illusion that wealth or status will save us.
\nThe illusion that resentment protects us.
\nThe illusion that we have plenty of time.<\/p>\n

Ashes sweep away illusions. When Francis stood naked in the public square, it was not to dramatize poverty, but to proclaim a truth:\u00a0Nothing but God is enough.<\/em><\/p>\n

Lent asks us the same question:\u2028 What am I clinging to that keeps me from trusting God completely?<\/p>\n

Perhaps it is not material wealth but control, not comfort but distraction caused by all the noise we call politics and news. Maybe it\u2019s not pleasure but fear. Fear learned from slander and the ruminations of false narratives about those who are absent and can’t defend themselves.<\/p>\n

Repentance means turning toward God and walking with God\u2019s people, allowing God to gently loosen our grip on all the things and thoughts we believe we need to \u201cmake it\u201d to obtain some of that salvation for ourselves.<\/p>\n

And then comes the second half of the command: \u201cBelieve in the Gospel.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Believe that mercy is stronger than sin.
\nBelieve that grace can reshape habits.
\nBelieve that forgiveness is healing.
\nBelieve that holiness, living a different way, is not reserved only for a few.
\nBelieve that hope isn\u2019t just wishful thinking but a confidence rooted in Divine promises, an active resilience of God’s faithfulness and love. A love stronger than hate and death. Hope is the anchor for the soul.<\/p>\n

St. Francis saw this not just as an idea, but as a way of life. He believed in the Gospel and aimed to live it so completely and joyfully that his life became a visible reminder of Christ. That is the goal of Lent. Not self-improvement.\u2028Not spiritual acrobats.\u2028But\u00a0transformation into love for God and the other, God\u2019s people.<\/p>\n

May this Lent, in the spirit of St. Francis, become for us not a season of heaviness but a season where we deepen and experience God\u2019s love for us and share that love with others. Turn back. Trust again.\u2028Believe the Gospel. Because God is not tired of us.<\/p>\n

Our God of Hope is waiting, as always, with mercy. To hear us say, like St. Francis, \u201cThis is what I want. This is what I seek, this is what I desire with all my heart.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

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