Ash Wednesday marks the first day of Lent for Catholics as they observe the time leading up to the mystical death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The day begins a 40-day period of fasting and introspection for Catholics and Christians all over the world.
Here are some facts behind Ash Wednesday including how Catholics mark the day and how the observance got started in the early Christian church.
Origins
The Catholic Encyclopedia reports Ash Wednesday’s origins go back to the Eighth Century C.E. when Gregorian priests anointed worshippers with ashes on their foreheads. The black ash was made by burning the previous year’s palm fronds from Palm Sunday observances.
The Old Testament tradition of wearing a sackcloth and rolling in ashes was a Jewish custom for showing penance for one’s disobedience to God. The prophet Jeremiah spoke of Jews engaging in such behavior and then later Isaiah critiquing the same process as not enough to please God. Instead of rolling around in ashes to show one’s penance in church, Catholic worshippers wore the sign of the cross on their foreheads on Ash Wednesday.
Liturgy
The liturgy of Ash Wednesday involves reading Scriptures about death and sacrifice. The most common of these sayings is “remember that you are dust and dust you shall return.” It marks the beginning of the 47 day period before Easter when Christians and Catholics remember their own mortality and sacrifice aspects of their lives to make themselves better people.
Churchgoers attend Holy Mass on Ash Wednesday. Vestments worn by the priest are colored purple or sometimes gray to mark the solemnity of the occasion. Purple signifies the royalty of Christ the King in terms of worship in the Catholic church. Lent is a time to recognize why Jesus is the Son of God for fulfilling the will of his Father.
Rituals
On Ash Wednesday, a priest will dip his thumbs into ashes made the day before. When he makes the sign of the cross on the foreheads of worshippers, he says a prescribed sentence to each person. Usually, penitents will keep the sign of the cross on their foreheads all day long as a sign of their sacrifice.
The beginning of Lent marks a time of fasting when no meat is to be consumed on Fridays, an observance to honor the flesh given up by Jesus at the Crucifixion. It is tradition for someone to give up some aspect of life or a detrimental personality trait for Lent, almost like a New Year’s resolution. Smoking, cursing, drinking are often given up by adults. Children can give up candy or donate their spare change to charities.
Sundays are exempt from giving up something as they are always feast days for the Catholic church. The point of doing without something for Lent is to realize life is better without certain foibles.William Browning is a research librarian.
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