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Ash Wednesday: What Is Ash Wednesday? How Do We Observe It? Why Should We?

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent in Western Christian churches. It derives from an early Christian practice of public penance. On this day, ashes made from burned palm branches from the previous year's Palm Sunday are used to place crosses on worshippers' foreheads, reminding them of their mortality and need to repent from sin. While not mentioned in the Bible, Ash Wednesday incorporates biblical themes of repentance, fasting, and focusing outwardly on others rather than inwardly. It is not required for Christians to observe, but can be a meaningful tradition for reflecting on one's spiritual life and relationship with God.

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Audrie Allyson Gabales
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52 views5 pages

Ash Wednesday: What Is Ash Wednesday? How Do We Observe It? Why Should We?

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent in Western Christian churches. It derives from an early Christian practice of public penance. On this day, ashes made from burned palm branches from the previous year's Palm Sunday are used to place crosses on worshippers' foreheads, reminding them of their mortality and need to repent from sin. While not mentioned in the Bible, Ash Wednesday incorporates biblical themes of repentance, fasting, and focusing outwardly on others rather than inwardly. It is not required for Christians to observe, but can be a meaningful tradition for reflecting on one's spiritual life and relationship with God.

Uploaded by

Audrie Allyson Gabales
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Audrie Allyson H.

Gabales STEM-AHS B 03/04/19

Ash Wednesday: What Is Ash Wednesday?


How Do We Observe It? Why Should We?

What is the meaning of Ash Wednesday?


Roman Catholic churches of the Latin Rite use this service to prepare church
members to better appreciate the death and resurrection of Christ through self-
examination, repentance, prayer, fasting, and self-denial. Ashes from the burned
palms of the preceding year's Palm Sunday are blessed. With these ashes, the priest
marks a cross on the foreheads of worshipers, saying, "Remember, man, that dust thou
art, and unto dust thou shalt return" (Genesis 3:19 KJV). Besides showing sorrow for
their sins, those who honor Ash Wednesday add an additional meaning; the need to
prepare for a holy death.

Origin of Ash Wednesday


Ash Wednesday has a non-Christian origin and was accepted into the beliefs of the
Catholic Church at the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. The council also settled upon
the 40-day fast period as the standard length to celebrate Lent. During this time
period the goal of Constantine was to combine pagans and Christians into a peaceable
unit within the Roman kingdom.

Even after the Council of Nicaea the beginning start date of Lent was still questioned.
In 601 Pope Gregory moved the beginning of Lent from the fourth Sunday of the year
to Ash Wednesday, 46 days before Easter. This changed allowed for 40 days of
fasting with six Sundays counted as feast days, for a total of 46 days for Lent. Pope
Gregory also instituted the tradition of marking parishioners forehead’s with ashes in
the shape of a cross.

Is Ash Wednesday Mentioned in the Bible?


Ash Wednesday is not specifically mentioned in the Bible, however, from Biblical
times, sprinkling oneself with ashes has been a mark of sorrow for sin. Several times
the Bible mentions people repenting in dust and ashes; for example: Mordecai (Esther
4:1), Job (Job 42:6), the inhabitants of Nineveh (Jonah 3:5-6), and Daniel (Daniel 9:3-
4). Repentance in dust and ashes often was accompanied with fasting during Bible
times.

The type of fast Jesus himself endorsed was the following, found in Matthew 6:16-18,
"Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For
they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say
to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash
your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in
the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”

Additionally, Isaiah 58:5-7 says, "Is it a fast that I have chosen, a day for a man to
afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head like a bulrush, and to spread out sackcloth
and ashes? Would you call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord? “Is this not
the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy
burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke? Is it not to share
your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast
out; when you see the naked, that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own
flesh?”

Jesus is calling His followers to avoid making a show when fasting, but rather to help
those in need. He is calling Christians to think externally in avenues of service,
instead of only thinking internally toward themselves. The point of that matter is this;
Jesus is interested in the condition of the heart and not merely external appearances or
show. As you think about your life, repentance, and fasting where is your heart? Are
you others focused or self focused? Do you desire to have true repentance and fasting
as mentioned in Psalms 51 (especially verses 10-13, 17), or are your actions merely
based on outward tradition?

Should Christians Celebrate Ash Wednesday?


As mentioned before, the Bible directly talks about repentance and fasting, but doesn’t
mention Ash Wednesday specifically. Therefore, Christians are under no obligation to
celebrate the holiday. The important fact to remember is that Christians should be
ready and willing to repent, fast, and focus on God throughout the year and not just
during the Lenten season.

Additionally, Ash Wednesday is not a day of holy obligation, although Roman


Catholics attend Mass on this day in order to mark the beginning of the Lenten season.
The churches of the Anglican Communion, as well as some other Protestant churches
observe Ash Wednesday. Eastern Rite churches, however, do not observe Ash
Wednesday, their Lent begins on the preceding Monday.

Why Should We Observe Ash Wednesday?


There is no biblical commandment that requires us to observe Ash Wednesday. Thus,
I believe this one of those practices that Christians are free to observe or not to
observe. The theological core of Ash Wednesday is, however, shaped by a biblical
theology of creation, sin, mortality, death, grace, and salvation. It also enacts biblical
injunctions to “weep with those who weep” and to “confess your sins to one another.”

Is Ash Wednesday a Holy Day of Obligation?


While Ash Wednesday is not a Holy Day of Obligation, all Roman Catholics are
encouraged to attend Mass on this day and to receive ashes on their foreheads in order
to mark the beginning of the Lenten season.

The Distribution of Ashes


During Mass, the ashes which give Ash Wednesday its name are distributed. The
ashes are made by burning the blessed palms that were distributed the previous year
on Palm Sunday; many churches ask their parishioners to return any palms that they
took home so that they can be burned.
After the priest blesses the ashes and sprinkles them with holy water, the faithful
come forward to receive them. The priest dips his right thumb in the ashes and,
making the Sign of the Cross on each person's forehead, says, "Remember, man, that
thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return" (or a variation on those words).

A Day of Repentance
The distribution of ashes reminds us of our own mortality and calls us to repentance.
In the early Church, Ash Wednesday was the day on which those who had sinned, and
who wished to be readmitted to the Church, would begin their public penance. The
ashes that we receive are a reminder of our own sinfulness, and many Catholics leave
them on their foreheads all day as a sign of humility.

Fasting and Abstinence Are Required


The Church emphasizes the penitential nature of Ash Wednesday by calling us
to fastand abstain from meat. Catholics who are over the age of 18 and under the age
of 60 are required to fast, which means that they can eat only one complete meal and
two smaller ones during the day, with no food in between. Catholics who are over the
age of 14 are required to refrain from eating any meat, or any food made with meat,
on Ash Wednesday.
Taking Stock of Our Spiritual Life
This fasting and abstinence is not simply a form of penance, however; it is also a call
for us to take stock of our spiritual lives. As Lent begins, we should set specific
spiritual goals we would like to reach before Easter and decide how we will pursue
them—for instance, by going to daily Mass when we can and receiving the Sacrament
of Confession more often.

How Ash Wednesday Enriches Our Lives and Our


Relationship with God
The denial of death . . . it’s all around us. When people die, they are often alone,
sequestered in hospitals far away from the sad eyes of friends and family. If someone
happens to die at home, the corpse is quickly sent away from the grieving relatives. In
polite society, one doesn’t talk much about death. And when it’s necessary to say
something that has to do with dying, nifty euphemisms keep us from confronting the
brute facts.

Ash Wednesday is a day to stare death in the face, to acknowledge our mortality. All
of us will die. Christians who observe this holiday get ashes “imposed” on their
foreheads, while a minister or lay church worker says, “You have come from dust,
and to dust you will return.” In other words, “You are going to die. And here are some
ashes to remind you, just in case you’ve forgotten.”

SOURCES:

https://www.bibleinfo.com/en/topics/holidays

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/markdroberts/series/ash-wednesday-practice-and-
meaning/

https://www.thoughtco.com/ash-wednesday-in-the-catholic-church-542463

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