Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent, Lent is a Liturgical Season about penance and yielding those that are most precious to us. We give them up because Jesus is our greatest treasure and in giving those things up you are growing closer to God.
Ash Wednesday wasn’t specifically mentioned in the bible but the closest reference is when Job said to the Lord, “I know that you can do everything and that no thought can be concealed from you. Who is he who hides counsel without knowledge? Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me which I did not know. Hear, and I will speak, I will question you and you declare to me. I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you. Therefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”
In Australia, some churches hold special Ash Wednesday mass in the evening or during the day. It is a time when people who seek penance for their wrongdoings are marked with the sign of the cross, from blessed ashes, on their forehead, it is the same practice we do at mass today. This symbolic occasion reminds people of their mortality and their sins, as well as the willingness to change and the hope of forgiveness. There are also those who chose this time of the year to donate to charities or take part in charity events as a way to get close to God.
In America Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lenten discipline for Christians. It is traditionally a time of fasting and prayer in preparation. For some Christians, Lent is a time to think about one’s life choices, as well as reflect on life directions. It serves as a wake-up call for some Christians.
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