One early reference comes from a service book of the Gregorian rite which describes a Day of Ashes. The day of ashes also appears early in Christian history, certainly as early as the eighth century and in some form or another even before that.
These lessons are given to those who have repented, been cleansed, and now walk in a new way, thus beginning the Lenten journey. “When you give… When you pray… When you fast…” He instructs the people in the posture of the Christian. It comes from Matthew’s account of the Sermon on the Mount when Jesus follow’s Moses’ steps up a mountain, but bringing the people with him, he sits down and opens his mouth to teach. The confrontation we experience with our mortality and sinfulness lead us to the gospel text. A little later, Eusebius also describes the rite of pouring ashes over the head of penitents following their confession. See how the ashes are used in pardoning sin, a practice continued by the Church and recorded as early as the third century. Here comes a third meaning behind the ashes: in Numbers, the Lord instructs Moses and Aaron to collect the ashes of a burned heifer mixed with water as a sin offering.
Our Lord takes up this point in Matthew-if his deeds had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented in sackcloth and ashes (Matthew 11:21)!Īs the day’s collect reminds us, God does not despise anything he has made but forgives the sins of all who are penitent. God sees the sackcloth and ashes of the repentant, for “a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise” (Psalm 51:17). Daniel and Job acted similarly in their own times. They repented in ashes and sackcloth (3:5). Take the case of the people of Nineveh who receive Jonah’s admonition and turned from their evil ways. This is the fate of all people, and the imposition of ashes on Ash Wednesday confronts us with this truth “head-on.” We, too, must die.īut ashes are not just a symbol of death and the curse. Without the breath of life, Adam must return to the dust. Disbelieving, Adam took the forbidden fruit and would now surely die. God formed Adam from the dust, breathed the breath of life into him, placed him in the garden, and set all of creation before him except for that forbidden tree. These words of God’s curse to Adam harken back to the very beginning. “You are dust, and to dust you shall return,” are often the first words those in attendance on Ash Wednesday hear as they walk into the nave and receive ashes on their forehead. As the beginning of Lent, Ash Wednesday reminds us: you are going to die, so repent. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Lenten journey, the church’s forty-day period of intense fasting and inner preparation that readies us to keep the feast of our Lord’s death and resurrection in sincerity and truth.
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