REFLECTIONS/ARTICLES

                       Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Season of Lent for Catholics. It is a season of penance, reflection, and fasting which prepares us for Christ’s Resurrection on Easter Sunday. Ash Wednesday always falls 46 days before Easter. While it is not a Holy Day of Obligation, all Roman Catholics are encouraged to attend Mass on this day in order to mark the beginning of the Lenten season. The ashes we receive on our forehead in the shape of a cross serve as an outward sign of our sinfulness and need for penance. The ashes also symbolize our mortality, a reminder that one day we will die and our bodies will return to dust. Following the example of the Ninevites, who did penance in sackcloth and ashes, our foreheads are marked with ashes to humble our hearts and remind us that life passes away on Earth. We remember this when we are told, “Remember, Man is dust, and unto dust you shall return” which is modeled after God’s address to Adam in Genesis 3:19 “By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return,” Abraham’s confession, “I am nothing but dust and ashes” Genesis 18:27 and also Job 34:15, Psalms 90:3, 104:29 and Ecclesiastes 3:20. It is thus a reminder of our mortality and our need to repent before this life is over and we face our Judge.

                 Ash Wednesday derives its name from the practice of blessing ashes made from palm branches blessed on the previous year’s Palm Sunday, and placing them on the heads of participants. It was on Palm Sunday that people rejoiced at Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem little realizing that He was going to die for their sins. By using the palms from Palm Sunday, we remind ourselves that we must not only rejoice at Jesus’ coming but also express regret at the fact that our sins made it necessary for Him to die for us in order to save us from hell. The tradition of receiving ashes has its origins in the Old Testament, where sinners performed acts of public penance. It was Pope Urban II who in the 11th century recommended that all Catholics take part in the practice of receiving ashes on Ash Wednesday. In the 12th century it became customary that the ashes used on Ash Wednesday were made by burning the previous year’s palm branches.

                        Ashes are a biblical symbol of mourning and penance made sacramental by the blessing of the Church, and they help us develop a spirit of humility and sacrifice. As James said: “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up” James 4:10. While the ashes symbolize penance and contrition, they are also a reminder that God is gracious and merciful to those who call on Him with repentant hearts. His Divine mercy is of utmost importance during the season of Lent, and the Church calls on us to seek that mercy during the entire Lenten season with reflection, prayer and penance.

                      The practice of fasting, wearing sackcloth and putting dust and ashes on one’s head was part of the Jewish custom in the Old Testament to express sorrow and penance for sins. There are numerous examples of people putting dust and ashes on their foreheads found in several books of the Bible. Ashes were used in ancient times to express grief. When Tamar was raped by her half-brother, “she sprinkled ashes on her head, tore her robe, and with her face buried in her hands went away crying” 2 Samuel 13:19. The gesture was also used to express sorrow for sins and faults. In Job 42:3–6, Job tells God: “I spoke of things I did not understand, too wonderful for me to know. My ears had heard of you, but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I retract all I have said, and in dust and ashes I repent.” The prophet Jeremiah calls for repentance by saying: “O my people! wrap yourself in sackcloth and roll in ashes” Jeremiah 6:26. The prophet Daniel recounted pleading to God, “I turned to the Lord and begged him. I pleaded with prayers and fasting. I did penance, I put on sackcloth and sat on an ash pile.” Daniel 9:3. Just prior to the New Testament period, the rebels fighting for Jewish independence, the Maccabees, prepared for battle using ashes: “They fasted that day, put on sackcloth, sprinkled ashes on their heads and tore their garments.” 1 Maccabees 3:47. Other examples of the practice are found in the books of Numbers 19:9, 19:17, Jonah 3:6, Esther 4:1, and Hebrews 9:13. Jesus Himself is quoted as speaking of the practice in Matthew 11:21 and Luke 10:13, “If the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago (sitting) in sackcloth and ashes” Matthew 11:2. While we no longer wear sackcloth or sit in dust and ashes, the customs of fasting and putting ashes on one’s forehead as a sign of mourning and penance have survived to this day. Christians continue the practice of using ashes as an external sign of repentance.

                         In the Catholic Church, Ash Wednesday is observed with fasting, abstinence from meat, and repentance – a day of contemplating one’s transgressions. It is a wonderful opportunity to begin our lives anew, and also serves as a good reminder of how we should behave during the whole Lenten season. The concept of penance is an integral part of the Ash Wednesday custom. By wearing the ashes, we are reminded of our sinfulness and we should seek to make amends for our sinfulness. The Church provides us one way to do this through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. During this period, we also reflect quietly on our personal relationship with God, and set some time aside to grow in holiness. It is a time for us to remember that we are sinners and that Jesus paid the ultimate price for our sins. As Lent begins, we should set specific spiritual goals we should reach before Easter and decide how we should pursue them—for instance, by going to daily Mass when we can and receiving the Sacrament of Confession more often. Marking the beginning of the Lenten season, Ash Wednesday is also a call for us to take stock of our spiritual lives.