Psalm 51 takes our lives seriously – the whole of our lives – in all of their complexity. It acknowledges plainly for us: The harm we do in the world is real, and so is the hurt that we know in our bodies and our lives – in bones that have been crushed, and hearts that have been broken. On Ash Wednesday, we say these try things and lean into this truth: In the love and mercy we find in Jesus Christ, "Always, we begin again."
Psalm 51 takes our lives seriously – the whole of our lives – in all of their complexity. It acknowledges plainly for us: The harm we do in the world is real, and so is the hurt that we know in our bodies and our lives – in bones that have been crushed, and hearts that have been broken. On Ash Wednesday, we say these try things and lean into this truth: In the love and mercy we find in Jesus Christ, "Always, we begin again."