Rev. Fr. Paul Ologun, SDV.
It does not matter, whether Ash Wednesday and Lent are new to you, or whether your church celebrates this season or not. There is a lot to learn from/about this 40-day period of ashen crosses and fasting.
What Is Ash Wednesday?
Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent. The Catholic Church, as well as many liturgical Protestant denominations such as Lutheran, Presbyterian, Episcopal, and Methodist adhere strictly to the “church calendar” which includes observances of Ash Wednesday and Lent.
On Ash Wednesday, churches will burn old palm branches or something similar and place a cross of ashes on the foreheads of those who participate in an Ash Wednesday celebration. The act of putting ashes symbolises our fragility and mortality as well as our need to be redeemed by the mercy of God. It simply mean that the ashes remind us that life is fleeting (we were made from dust and the ashes remind us that we will return to ash one day). The ash is a sign of repentance from sin. In the Bible, ashes were a sign of mourning, and the ashes are used to symbolize that we mourn our sin and need to be forgiven.
What Is Lent?
Lent is the 40-day period from Ash Wednesday, not counting Sundays, leading to Easter/Resurrection Sunday. It is a period that prepares us for Easter - the greatest feast of the liturgical year. This 40 days recall the 40 days of Jesus in the desert. As such, it is meant to be a period of spiritual renewal. During Lent, people fast. While Biblical fasting only includes fasting from food, fasting for Lent in modern terms is used in a broader sense to include giving up something that is important to the person or something he/she spends a lot of time doing. It could also mean fasting from certain vices in order to become more like Christ.
Each Sunday of Lent, the fast is broken and then resumed the next day. The purpose of fasting for Lent is to draw closer in our relationship with God. It is to remind us to turn our thoughts toward him and recognize our fallen state and our need for him.
Therefore, when we participate in Ash Wednesday and Lent observances, here are some of the great lessons it can teach us:
The Ashes Teach Us to Focus on Eternity
It is very easy to be consumed by the temporal aspects of life. Focusing on our different engagements and daily survival. We make plans for tomorrow, next week, next month, next year vacation, holidays etc. While engrossed in these busy schedule and great planning, we often tend to forget that life is fleeting. However, we aren’t promised tomorrow, or even an hour from now. Our life is not ours and not within our control. In the letter of St. James {4: 14}, the word of God reminds us of this, “…yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then disappears.”
One aspect of the ashes is to remind us that one day we too will return to dust. This makes us focus on the aspect that our lives are short, and eternity is forever. When we have eternity on our minds and especially on the fact that this world is not our home, we can better reflect on the way we are living.
Ash Wednesday can make us question:
- Are we doing anything on Earth to make someone draw close to Jesus?
- Are we paying attention to our spiritual growth or are we too caught up with the fleeting aspects of life?
- Are we storing up treasures on Earth or treasures in heaven?
Ashes Can Reveal Our Confidence in Christ
After the Ash Wednesday service, parishioners generally leave the ashes on their forehead and continue the rest of their day/evening as they usually do. Having to identify with Christ in such a public manner can cause various emotions and thoughts in people. Being identified as Christians,especially in this way, will provide opportunities to witness to Jesus - through word and action. The fact that people will question us on the meaning of the Ashe enable us to share our faith with them.
Having to wrestle with these questions can help us see how confident we are about our knowledge of the Gospel. It can also reveal if we are shy or bold about our relationship with Christ.
Fasting Teaches Us to Refocus on Christ
The craving for food is perhaps the strongest drive in the human body. When we do not have food, it becomes our number one priority and consumes our thoughts. That is why Lent requires fasting. It is a drive we cannot ignore. With fasting, when the hunger pains hit, we are encoucared to focus our mind on God, pray, and remind ourselves of our need for Him.
In the broader sense of fasting that the church accepts today, I have noticed many people fasting from screens. Technology, smartphones, and social media consume much free time and people give up this modern convenience to focus on Christ. More so, some of this free time are devoted to prayer and works of mercy.
Fasting from a necessity or something important to us during the Lenten season, or really any time, makes us keep Christ consistently on the forefront of our minds. Focusing on him grows our relationship with him. Since lent is a time of spiritual renewal, fasting from certain vices helps us
Fasting Teaches Us to Rejoice in the Resurrection
During Lent, Sundays are celebration and “feast days” when fasting is not required. These Sundays are small celebrations leading up to the ultimate celebration of the Resurrection.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is to be the paramount celebration in all Christendom. It should fill us with uncontainable joy and celebration, and the Sundays leading to it are to prepare us.
Going through a fast helps us to be more joyful and thankful for the feast. Since fasting causes us to think of Christ, our sin, and our need for him, we realize what a “feast” he offers to us.
We have been brought from spiritual death to life, saved from our enslavement to sin, and get to spend eternity in heaven with Jesus. What a feast to rejoice about and celebrate!
Ash Wednesday and Lent are celebrated in different ways, in various degrees, among the church today. I encourage you, if your church celebrates Ash Wednesday and Lent, don’t become numb to its meaning. Let your heart dive in and grow closer to your Savior.
If your church does not celebrate this time, always know you can participate by yourself, or with others, if you choose. Take the time to focus on Christ, your need for him, your relationship with him, and allow yourself to grow.
May you find more joy in the resurrection of Jesus Christ this Lenten season than you ever have before.
The Lord is risen indeed!
It does not matter, whether Ash Wednesday and Lent are new to you, or whether your church celebrates this season or not. There is a lot to learn from/about this 40-day period of ashen crosses and fasting.
What Is Ash Wednesday?
Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent. The Catholic Church, as well as many liturgical Protestant denominations such as Lutheran, Presbyterian, Episcopal, and Methodist adhere strictly to the “church calendar” which includes observances of Ash Wednesday and Lent.
On Ash Wednesday, churches will burn old palm branches or something similar and place a cross of ashes on the foreheads of those who participate in an Ash Wednesday celebration. The act of putting ashes symbolises our fragility and mortality as well as our need to be redeemed by the mercy of God. It simply mean that the ashes remind us that life is fleeting (we were made from dust and the ashes remind us that we will return to ash one day). The ash is a sign of repentance from sin. In the Bible, ashes were a sign of mourning, and the ashes are used to symbolize that we mourn our sin and need to be forgiven.
What Is Lent?
Lent is the 40-day period from Ash Wednesday, not counting Sundays, leading to Easter/Resurrection Sunday. It is a period that prepares us for Easter - the greatest feast of the liturgical year. This 40 days recall the 40 days of Jesus in the desert. As such, it is meant to be a period of spiritual renewal. During Lent, people fast. While Biblical fasting only includes fasting from food, fasting for Lent in modern terms is used in a broader sense to include giving up something that is important to the person or something he/she spends a lot of time doing. It could also mean fasting from certain vices in order to become more like Christ.
Each Sunday of Lent, the fast is broken and then resumed the next day. The purpose of fasting for Lent is to draw closer in our relationship with God. It is to remind us to turn our thoughts toward him and recognize our fallen state and our need for him.
Therefore, when we participate in Ash Wednesday and Lent observances, here are some of the great lessons it can teach us:
The Ashes Teach Us to Focus on Eternity
It is very easy to be consumed by the temporal aspects of life. Focusing on our different engagements and daily survival. We make plans for tomorrow, next week, next month, next year vacation, holidays etc. While engrossed in these busy schedule and great planning, we often tend to forget that life is fleeting. However, we aren’t promised tomorrow, or even an hour from now. Our life is not ours and not within our control. In the letter of St. James {4: 14}, the word of God reminds us of this, “…yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then disappears.”
One aspect of the ashes is to remind us that one day we too will return to dust. This makes us focus on the aspect that our lives are short, and eternity is forever. When we have eternity on our minds and especially on the fact that this world is not our home, we can better reflect on the way we are living.
Ash Wednesday can make us question:
- Are we doing anything on Earth to make someone draw close to Jesus?
- Are we paying attention to our spiritual growth or are we too caught up with the fleeting aspects of life?
- Are we storing up treasures on Earth or treasures in heaven?
Ashes Can Reveal Our Confidence in Christ
After the Ash Wednesday service, parishioners generally leave the ashes on their forehead and continue the rest of their day/evening as they usually do. Having to identify with Christ in such a public manner can cause various emotions and thoughts in people. Being identified as Christians,especially in this way, will provide opportunities to witness to Jesus - through word and action. The fact that people will question us on the meaning of the Ashe enable us to share our faith with them.
Having to wrestle with these questions can help us see how confident we are about our knowledge of the Gospel. It can also reveal if we are shy or bold about our relationship with Christ.
Fasting Teaches Us to Refocus on Christ
The craving for food is perhaps the strongest drive in the human body. When we do not have food, it becomes our number one priority and consumes our thoughts. That is why Lent requires fasting. It is a drive we cannot ignore. With fasting, when the hunger pains hit, we are encoucared to focus our mind on God, pray, and remind ourselves of our need for Him.
In the broader sense of fasting that the church accepts today, I have noticed many people fasting from screens. Technology, smartphones, and social media consume much free time and people give up this modern convenience to focus on Christ. More so, some of this free time are devoted to prayer and works of mercy.
Fasting from a necessity or something important to us during the Lenten season, or really any time, makes us keep Christ consistently on the forefront of our minds. Focusing on him grows our relationship with him. Since lent is a time of spiritual renewal, fasting from certain vices helps us
Fasting Teaches Us to Rejoice in the Resurrection
During Lent, Sundays are celebration and “feast days” when fasting is not required. These Sundays are small celebrations leading up to the ultimate celebration of the Resurrection.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is to be the paramount celebration in all Christendom. It should fill us with uncontainable joy and celebration, and the Sundays leading to it are to prepare us.
Going through a fast helps us to be more joyful and thankful for the feast. Since fasting causes us to think of Christ, our sin, and our need for him, we realize what a “feast” he offers to us.
We have been brought from spiritual death to life, saved from our enslavement to sin, and get to spend eternity in heaven with Jesus. What a feast to rejoice about and celebrate!
Ash Wednesday and Lent are celebrated in different ways, in various degrees, among the church today. I encourage you, if your church celebrates Ash Wednesday and Lent, don’t become numb to its meaning. Let your heart dive in and grow closer to your Savior.
If your church does not celebrate this time, always know you can participate by yourself, or with others, if you choose. Take the time to focus on Christ, your need for him, your relationship with him, and allow yourself to grow.
May you find more joy in the resurrection of Jesus Christ this Lenten season than you ever have before.
The Lord is risen indeed!
Does it mean that Jesus removed Sundays when he did his own fasting and any biblical backup.Or is it just our doctrine . thanks. thanks
ReplyDeleteThe Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke recorded that Jesus fasted for forty days and forty nights. The issue of Sunday does not arise because His fast preceeds His resurrection. Sundays are celebrations of the death and resurrection of Jesus and are automatically considered days of joy and cannot be considered days of fasting.
ReplyDeleteThe reason fasting on Sundays is not usually done is that fasting is generally considered a penitential exercise, and penitential exercises are normally lifted on a solemnity (which Sunday always is). Lent is traditionally considered 40 days long, even though the time between Ash Wednesday and Easter is actually 46 days. This is because Sundays are not considered part of Lent.
Each Sunday is a miniature celebration of Easter Sunday, which therefore is considered a day of celebration and rejoicing rather than penance.
However, be that as it may, personal spiritual fasting is not prohibited on Sundays. Catholics are free to fast in various ways in their personal spiritual journey, though it is recommended that they do so in consultation with a spiritual director.