Ash Wednesday Info
As previously mentioned, this year Ash Wednesday is 2/17. This is the day we start our Lenten journey. We usually begin with an afternoon/evening service that includes the imposition of Ashes. Last year we had a series of stations set up in the sanctuary for personal devotions at your leisure, ending with Ashes.
What is the deal with Ashes on this day? Have you ever wondered why we do this? We can see when someone has been to a service and started their Lenten journey because the Ashes are visible on their face. But in our worship, we specifically read in Matthew 6 about NOT making a show of our faith with outward signs… It seems like a contradiction and it is a bit confusing. Back in the day [Bible times] people who were repenting for a transgression or a significant change in attitude would adopt a manner that would involve humility and public display of repentance - wearing sackcloth and covering oneself with ashes. This behavior of repentance would be very public and draw attention to a person’s devotion and faith. Sometimes, it would be a bit of a show and occasionally more show than actual change. This led to the teaching that repentance should be more private and less of a “production.”
So why, then, do we have such a visible sign of repentance at the beginning of our Lenten season with the imposition of ashes? Not for their visibility but as a reminder. Primarily, the ashes are used to remind us that our life is finite. We are born and we die as children of God. Marking the beginning of our Lenten journey - as we dedicate ourselves to journey with Jesus to Jerusalem - we are remembering our own mortality and our fleeting opportunities to mend relationships, with God and with one another. Traditionally, the palms from last year’s Palm Sunday - now crisp and dry, are burnt to make the ashes for Ash Wednesday [“Sunday’s Palms are Wednesday’s Ashes - as another Lent begins…” TFWS #2138]. We use these ashes to remember that the adoration of the crowds as Jesus entered into Jerusalem quickly turned to the crowd’s cry of “Crucify!”
Can we enter Lent without Ashes on Feb 17? Absolutely! Look to Facebook and the website for worship elements and look for a little devotional booklet to come to you in the next couple of weeks.
As previously mentioned, this year Ash Wednesday is 2/17. This is the day we start our Lenten journey. We usually begin with an afternoon/evening service that includes the imposition of Ashes. Last year we had a series of stations set up in the sanctuary for personal devotions at your leisure, ending with Ashes.
What is the deal with Ashes on this day? Have you ever wondered why we do this? We can see when someone has been to a service and started their Lenten journey because the Ashes are visible on their face. But in our worship, we specifically read in Matthew 6 about NOT making a show of our faith with outward signs… It seems like a contradiction and it is a bit confusing. Back in the day [Bible times] people who were repenting for a transgression or a significant change in attitude would adopt a manner that would involve humility and public display of repentance - wearing sackcloth and covering oneself with ashes. This behavior of repentance would be very public and draw attention to a person’s devotion and faith. Sometimes, it would be a bit of a show and occasionally more show than actual change. This led to the teaching that repentance should be more private and less of a “production.”
So why, then, do we have such a visible sign of repentance at the beginning of our Lenten season with the imposition of ashes? Not for their visibility but as a reminder. Primarily, the ashes are used to remind us that our life is finite. We are born and we die as children of God. Marking the beginning of our Lenten journey - as we dedicate ourselves to journey with Jesus to Jerusalem - we are remembering our own mortality and our fleeting opportunities to mend relationships, with God and with one another. Traditionally, the palms from last year’s Palm Sunday - now crisp and dry, are burnt to make the ashes for Ash Wednesday [“Sunday’s Palms are Wednesday’s Ashes - as another Lent begins…” TFWS #2138]. We use these ashes to remember that the adoration of the crowds as Jesus entered into Jerusalem quickly turned to the crowd’s cry of “Crucify!”
Can we enter Lent without Ashes on Feb 17? Absolutely! Look to Facebook and the website for worship elements and look for a little devotional booklet to come to you in the next couple of weeks.
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