Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Ash Wedesday & Duct Tape

ash wed


Ash Wednesday gets its name from the practice of placing ashes on the foreheads of the faithful as a sign of repentance. The ashes used are gathered after the Palm Crosses from the previous year's Palm Sunday are burned. In the liturgical practice of some churches, the ashes are mixed with the Oil of the Catechumens (one of the sacred oils) used to anoint those about to be baptized, though some churches use ordinary oil. This paste is used by the priest who presides at the service to make the sign of the cross first upon his own forehead and then on each of those present who kneel before him at the altar rail. As he does so, he recites the words: "Remember (O man) that you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

(We don't kneel at the altar rail - there isn't room - those days have long gone.)

The priest or minister says one of the following when applying the ashes: "Remember, O man, that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return. (Book of Genesis)
"Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel." (Gospel of St Mark)
"Repent, and hear the good news." (Gospel of St Mark)

So Lent is a time for reflection, repentance and reconciliation for believers.
Better rush and get my Lent off to a good start and that means ashes. In my case it also means duct tape because keeping my mouth shut when certain untoward things happen is difficult. And during Lent I try to be a better person!

4 comments:

  1. I'm giving up blogging (on my blog) for Lent. I'm already feeling the withdrawal symptoms. Reflection. Prayer. Making use of my time in other ways. All good ideas and intentions.

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  2. Well Annie, giving up blogging is definitely a hard one - it would be for me. Not that I blog as often as I used to or as I would like but time constraint is a problem.
    I will follow you to see how things are going. I am wondering why your blogs are not coming up in my sidebar. Will have to check it out.

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  3. I'm fascinated with Ash Wednesday and Lent, since my protestant background never recognized these traditions.

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  4. Good morning Bee
    I enjoyed this post. Like you, I am in great need of Duct tape too. Usually, when my mouth runs away with me, I just tell myself I am 'being honest'. However, during Lent I am trying to really be honest and admit to myself that I just need to keep my opinions to myself and just keep quiet. HOW DIFFICULT IS THAT!!! God bless you.

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