What is Ash Wednesday? |
Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a season of preparation that leads up to Easter. The purpose of Ash Wednesday is to recognize our sinfulness and frailty before a holy and powerful God while we also remember his incredible love and mercy as we repent and turn to him.
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What is the imposition of ashes? |
Ashes are a symbol of our repentance and our mortality. In the Old Testament, people would often repent before the Lord by wearing sackcloth and pouring ashes on their head. On Ash Wednesday, ashes are placed on our foreheads as we hear the words, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you will return.”
Ashes are placed on our foreheads in the form of a cross, reminding us that our sinfulness and mortality have been redeemed in the cross of Christ. We are marked as people of the cross, and we live in the new life that is offered to us through the death and resurrection of Jesus. |