I told one of the women in my bible study the other night that I love Lent...I think she thought I was a little crazy because Lent is not a festive season of joy and celebration. I think that is exactly why I like it though; it is a time of quiet, reverent, and peaceful reflection. It's a time to partake in penance that will more closely align your thoughts and actions with what God desires for you. It is a time that is focused on praying (spending more time with God), fasting (letting go of the things of this world), and giving (sharing your blessings with those around you). What a beautiful opportunity to build a deeper richer relationship with our Lord.
Here is my original post from last year:
http://greatandholyadventure.blogspot.com/2013/02/fast-pray-give.html
Celebration: Marks the beginning of the season of Lent. The 40 day period that represents the 40 days that Jesus was in the desert before he started his public ministry and also is symbolic of the 40 years the Israelites spent in exile after the exodus. It is a season of penance, reflection, and fasting which prepares us for Christ's Resurrection on Easter Sunday, through which we attain redemption.
This video is does an excellent job of highlighting the key focal points of the Lenten season that Ash Wednesday begins...
http://www.catholic.org/clife/lent/ashwed.php
Historical background:
"Remember, Man is dust, and unto dust you shall return."
Ashes are a symbol of penance made sacramental by the blessing of the Church, and they help us develop a spirit of humility and sacrifice.
The distribution of ashes comes from a ceremony of ages past. Christians who had committed grave faults performed public penance. On Ash Wednesday, the Bishop blessed the hair shirts which they were to wear during the forty days of penance, and sprinkled over them ashes made from the palms from the previous year. Then, while the faithful recited the Seven Penitential Psalms, the penitents were turned out of the church because of their sins -- just as Adam, the first man, was turned out of Paradise because of his disobedience. The penitents did not enter the church again until Maundy Thursday after having won reconciliation by the toil of forty days' penance and sacramental absolution. Later, all Christians, whether public or secret penitents, came to receive ashes out of devotion. In earlier times, the distribution of ashes was followed by a penitential procession.
The ashes are made from the blessed palms used in the Palm Sunday celebration of the previous year. The ashes are christened with Holy Water and are scented by exposure to incense. While the ashes symbolize penance and contrition, they are also a reminder that God is gracious and merciful to those who call on Him with repentant hearts. His Divine mercy is of utmost importance during the season of Lent, and the Church calls on us to seek that mercy during the entire Lenten season with reflection, prayer and penance.
When we receive ashes on our foreheads, we remember who we are. We remember that we are creatures of the earth ("Remember that you are dust"). We remember that we are mortal beings ("and to dust you will return"). We remember that we are baptized. We remember that we are people on a journey of conversion ("Turn away from sin and be faithful to the gospel"). We remember that we are members of the body of Christ (and that smudge on our foreheads will proclaim that identity to others, too).
Renewing our sense of who we really are before God is the core of the Lenten experience. It is so easy to forget, and thus we fall into habits of sin, ways of thinking and living that are contrary to God's will.
Biblical basis:
Ashes were used in ancient times to express mourning. Dusting oneself with ashes was the penitent's way of expressing sorrow for sins and faults.
An ancient example of one expressing one's penitence is found in...
Job 42:3-6
3 ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
4 ‘Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.’
5 I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
6 therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes.”
The prophet Jeremiah, for example, calls for repentance this way...
Jer 6:26
26 O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth,
and roll in ashes;
make mourning as for an only son,
most bitter lamentation,
for suddenly the destroyer
will come upon us.
The prophet Daniel recounted pleading to God this way...
Daniel 9:3
3 Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes.
Just prior to the New Testament period, the rebels fighting for Jewish independence, the Maccabees, prepared for battle using ashes...
1 Maccabees 3:47
47 That day they fasted and wore sackcloth; they sprinkled ashes on their heads and tore their clothes
Other examples are found in several other books of the Bible including...
Numbers 19:9, 19:17
9 And a man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and deposit them outside the camp in a clean place. And they shall be kept for the water for impurity for the congregation of the people of Israel; it is a sin offering.
17 For the unclean they shall take some ashes of the burnt sin offering, and fresh water shall be added in a vessel.
Jonah 3:6
6 The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
Matthew 11:21
21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
Luke 10:13
13 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
Hebrews 9:13
13 For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh.
Ezekiel 9 also speaks of a linen-clad messenger marking the forehead of the city inhabitants that have sorrow over the sins of the people. All those without the mark are destroyed.
Ways to Celebrate:
-Craft ideas for kids and youth:
**Make a cross from matches to represent ashes and humility or another centerpiece as a daily reminder of the season.
http://www.loyolapress.com/assets/fg_comp/pdf_219878.pdf
http://www.orientaltrading.com/days-of-lent-paper-chain-craft-kit-a2-48_7316.fltr
-Fun family ideas:
**Be sure to add special practices to your family calendar like going to a Knights of the Columbus Fish Fry that happens on Fridays during Lent
**Make a plan for what your family is going to give up together to bring your family closer together and closer to God
**Lenten Alms Jar- Spend Ash Wednesday with your children choosing a charitable organization or another cause to donate the collected alms-fund to when Lent has concluded. One of the most popular Ash Wednesday activities for many children is purchasing and planting trees, or buying decorations for the children's ward in a hospital. An alms jar is used to collect the money saved as a result of whatever form of self-denial is undertaken during Lent, such as giving up smoking, candy, or renting movies.
-Religious traditions:
**Go to mass to receive ashes
**Say a family prayer together to celebrate Lent
**Be sure to add special practices to your family advent calendar like going to confession, adoration, daily mass, and stations of the cross
How we celebrated:
Aaron and I kept everything very simple to usher in this solemn season. We attended mass together in the morning which was the perfect way to start the day. We followed the fasting guidelines and decided on how we wanted to pray, fast, and give this Lenten season. For dinner, we had a very simple dinner of soup and lit the candle in our centerpiece for the first night. It really was a simple reverent way to begin this special time. Read more about the specifics of our Lenten journey in the next post.
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