There are days in the Church calendar that seem unassuming, almost silent to the outside world, but which have the power to transform lives.

Ash Wednesday is one of them (“Go to your inner room, close the door…” Mt 6:6). The Day of the Covenant of Love is another (“…small and insignificant events became great events,” Founding Document).

At first glance, they are strange moments: one marked by ashes, silence, and penance; the other by celebration, consecration, and renewed zeal. Despite the contrast, when we look more closely, we realize that they speak of the same path: recognizing who we are before God and choosing to belong to Him again.

We can say that one prepares the heart for the other!

Ash Wednesday: awareness + conversion

Today is the day when the Church looks at us and says, “Remember: you are dust… but you are loved.”

The ashes do not represent humiliation; rather, they show us the truth. They take us out of our illusions and place us in the essential:

• I am fragile

• I cannot save myself

• I need God

All over the world, we will hear the same words: “Remember that you are dust,” “Repent and believe in the Gospel.”

Although strong, these two phrases are not a message of fear, but an invitation to the truth. It is as if the Church were saying to us with affection: “Stop. Look within. Return to the essentials.”

The ashes strip us of our illusions. They remind us that we are dependent, limited, and small. That we do not control everything. That we need God.

But this is important to remember: God never calls us just to look at our miseries. He always calls us to take the next step. And what is that step?

Covenant of Love: surrender + belonging

The Covenant of Love is like a step beyond; it is almost the “next move,” since I know that I am small… so I surrender myself.

The Covenant of Love is not only about conversion, but also about relationship. A loving relationship of belonging. It is a conscious decision to walk with Mary, having her as a companion and teacher in daily life.

It is like saying: “I don’t want to walk alone; I place my life in the hands of the Mother.”

If the ashes say “come back,”
the Covenant says, “Stay with me.”

One movement empties; the other fills.

The Grace of inner transformation

Looking at this day of grace that opens Lent, we can summarize:

Ashes = recognizing one’s own smallness
Covenant = offering that smallness as a gift

This is very characteristic of our Schoenstatt spirituality. Our family does not offer perfection (although we seek it). We offer our misery, our limitations, our daily efforts as contributions to the Capital of Grace, exactly the “dust” of ashes.

That is to say:
God takes the dust…
and Mary transforms it into an instrument.

And it is from this mixture that God forms saints!