Yesterday, I passed a woman on my way to the 110th St stop of the B/C subway line. She had a smudge on her forehead... I noticed but didn't really pause, since it wasn't the weirdest thing I'd seen all day. But then I got on the train and the man across from me had a big dark thumbprint in the middle of his forhead, as did another kid sitting a few seats down from him. Hmmm. Multiple citings of oddities means there is a unifying theme... Oh that's right! 40 days before Easter, Mardi Gras just finished, Lent is beginning... Ash Wednesday.
My church doesn't participate in the practices of Ash Wednesday, although I think its a beautiful gesture/tradition/practice. Wanting to learn more and make sure I was getting my facts straight, I did some googling to brush up on the meaning of the smudgy foreheads. (This is my understanding...)
Ash Wednesday is a day of repentance, signifying the beginning of Lent, which is a period of fasting and personal sacrifice precending Good Friday and Easter, meant to reaffirm faith in Christ and commitment to God. The ash that they put on their forhead is created by burning the palm fronds from the previous year's Good Friday and mixing with a consecrated oil, which is then applied by a priest as he recites the words: "Remember, O man, that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return."
I was really taken with this whole idea and kept repeating the phrase in latin to myself all day long: Memento homo, quia pulvis es, et in pulverem reverteris.
What I found truly moving, however, was how many people I saw yesterday with the ash on their forehead. Every few steps through the crowd, on every subway platform, in every store, on every block I saw people participating in this open expression of faith.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Ashes are also used in cleansing ceremonies in the absence of water. Thus, the ashes used on Ash Wednesday are, in some faiths, symbols of the cleansing of one's spirit in preparation for the coming of Christ (Easter)and as a penitential substitute for water as a sign of Baptism. Water both stifles and refreshes, drowns and makes alive; so the ashes tell of both death and renewal. At least, in this humble Lutheran's opinion.
It's refreshing, isn't it, to see many so comfortable with their faith that they can be public about it without a lot of hoopla? I love the quiet commitment.
The ashes are also the burnt remains of the palm fronds from the previous year's Palm Sunday celebrations (or they're supposed to be).
In other words, in reminding yourself of your own mortality, you are using the charred remains of Jesus's triumphant return to the city of Jerusalem.
I'd also add that it was one of the most amazing things about my first spring working in NYC. I have always gotten ashes, as it is part of my faith. And there have always been a few people around me who also had them.
But in NY? Particularly in Midtown? It's like every third person you see has ashes. Really remarkable how you can suddenly feel a kinship to so many people you'll never know.
Post a Comment