Ashes together (Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21)
Praying in community is often more powerful than praying “in secret.”
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When I’m working on my laptop I usually use a Bible website instead of opening a print Bible, exposing me to newer translations than those I’ve had in my house or office for decades. I was horrified when reading this Ash Wednesday passage from Matthew to realize that one such translation replaces the word “dismal” with “somber” when Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, advises people how not to act when fasting. I then compared all the English translations and realized most translations don’t use “dismal.” This threw me, because “dismal” has long been key to my understanding of this passage, as well as how I have preached it for some 17 years.
