Why Ashes on Ash Wednesday?

Ash Wednesday is one of my favorite days of the liturgical year. Quiet, solemn and reflective, we cast off our selfish pride and our attachments to material things to stand before God in the humility of repentance. The heart of the Christian faith is love, and the ability to receive God’s love and extend that to others begins in humility. Paul wisely tells us in Romans 12:3,

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.

Ash Wednesday, which falls on February 14 this year, is the Wednesday of the seventh week before Easter and the first day of Lent. The day is named for the practice of imposing ashes, a practice that many Lutheran congregations have found to be a deeply meaningful part of the Ash Wednesday liturgy.

Using ashes as a sign of repentance is an ancient practice that is often mentioned in the Bible. The early Christians adopted the use of ashes from Jewish practice as an external mark of penitence in these and other ways:
·      Ashes remind us of God's condemnation of sin, as God said to Adam, "Dust you are and to dust you shall return" (Genesis 3:19).
·      Ashes suggest cleansing and renewal. They were used anciently in the absence of soap. Even on Ash Wednesday, this most penitential day, we receive ashes in the form of the cross, the same symbol placed on our bodies with water in our baptism. Even in this ashen mark of death, we anticipate the new life of Easter.
·      Ashes remind us of the shortness of human life, for it is said as we are buried into the ground or as ashes are placed in a columbarium (see “What are columbaria and memorial gardens?”). "We commit this body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship, p. 284).
·      Ashes are a symbol of our need to repent, confess our sins, and return to God.

I invite you to bring these reflections to our Ash Wednesday service on February 14 at 6:30 p.m. Come early or stay late to sit in silent contemplation. You may also use our new prayer station at the far left corner of the sanctuary and light candles there. May the Holy Spirit be your guide as we enter the season of Lent together and walk with Jesus to the cross.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Raabe

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