The ash on our forehead is a profound sign of our faith in a compassionate God, despite our labelling it as our human fragility and mortality. It is a public sign of unashamed vulnerability by Catholics to colleagues at work or onlookers on the streets. When we participate in this deeply reverential rite at Mass, it connotes that our desire for repentance and to be reconciled with God is deeply embedded in our heart. Through the Prophet Joel's mouth, God speaks - "return to me with all your heart". This returning to God is owed to God, Who has delicately engraved His love into our hearts.

While we acknowledge sin is a grievous rejection of the goodness of God, we focus on His compassion. Sin severs our relationships with God and everything created; marked by our abusive rebellion to anything that is emblematic of hope, faith and love. In the Scriptures, repentance and reconciling is not just feeling bad about the past and looking for forgiveness. It is about choosing to adopt a complete change of thinking, a new way of seeing our lives, moving forward on a track paved by Jesus of Nazareth. Our reconciling and compassionate attitude are marked with unassuming prayer, generous fasting, and honest giving. One is incomplete without the other two. Take heart. The ash on our head is powerful. Either you treat it as ridiculous dirt or as an emblem for ambassadors of compassion.