That all sounds good but how about considering what God said on the matter? He said to wash your face and keep it in secret not make a public display of it by marking your face for all to see. He didn’t say you were glorifying Him by making a public display of it. In fact He said that only if you do it in secret would He reward you.
It is gratuitously offensive to suggest that I have NOT considered what God said on the matter. This sort of cloaked personal attack is rapidly growing old.
You see, we do not think of the sayings of Jesus as a new and demanding law which requires literal observance at the expense of the act itself. Those Protestants who speak most loudly of throwing off the old Law immediately adopt a new one, and use it as a basis to insult those with whom they disagree. Ashes on the forehead are not the issue in what Jesus says.
Jesus described the act of the Pharisee in terms of his motive and expectation. He disfigures his face to garner praise. He receives the praise he seeks and so has his reward.
But it is ridiculous to suggest that because one person marks his face for a bad reason, no one could possibly mark his face for a good reason. Some people maim themselves because they are very mentally ill. Others because they think it an act of piety which will earn merit. But YOUR argument is because SOME people maim themselves for bad reasons, therefore to remove a gangrenous leg would be bad. This is because your argument relies on externals, not unlike the arguments of Muslims. Even in court we are not so superficial and we distinguish between degrees of culpable homicide and even acknowledge that some homicide incurs no guilt. BECAUSE we see that "the object specifies the act," and therefore two different acts can both end up with a dead person at our feet.
But the reasoning trotted out every Lent -- because dissing Catholics is more important to Protestants than praising God and victory in a bogus argument is more valuable the learning the Truth in an honest discussion -- is - "OOH! Pharisees! Disfigured faces. Catholics (and many others) Disfigured faces! So Catholics are Pharisees!"
We are told Jesus and the twelve didn't always wash before they ate. The Pharisees did. I'm guessing most non-Catholics in the US wash their hands before meals. Therefore, according to the organon of this argument, non-Catholics are Pharisees, for they both wash before meals.
Squares have straight sides! Octagons have straight sides! Therefore Squares are Octagons!
You couldn't pay me enough to deal with this.