Ash Wednesday, on other hand, is about the devine love of God. A love expressed in the act of sending his only begotten son to dir for the sins of all mankind. What possible connection can such perfect love have to love that we humans struggle to muster for one another. A love that is often unreliable and self-serving,
Return to the Lord your God
for he is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and abounding to love,
and he relents from sending calamity🙏🏻
For human being, the connection is that the only reason we are capable of showing any kind of love to one another is that Christ first showed love to us. When our love for each other fails, as it invariably does in ways both small and large, we look to christ to see what perfect love looks like, and we find in that perfect love forgiveness for all the times we have fallen short.