If you see black smudges on someone’s forehead today? Don’t panic. Today is Ash Wednesday.
In case today catches you a bit by surprise, perhaps this info will spare you an awkward moment with that colleague or person on the street that you might encounter.
Trivia: On Ash Wednedsay.
People go to church, and the priest makes the sign of the cross on their forehead–with ashes.
Here are some talking points:
– The Ashes are made from the burned palm branches leftover from last year’s Palm Sunday services.
– Today is the first day of Lent.
– Ash Wednesday is 40 days before Good Friday.
– It is the day after Shrove Tuesday (Mardi Gras).
SO, here’s the deal. In the Bible, Ashes signify mourning. When in angst, people would tear their clothes and put ashes on their head (see: 1 Samuel 4:12, Esther 4:1).
Ashes also are a symbol of how the sinner feels when he stands before an almighty God.
So there you have it. Ash Wednesday brings to remembrance these things:
1. You and I are sinners (saved by the action of Christ on the cross).
2. God is all powerful, just, and holy (we are not).
3. Life is short. Make the most of it (not just physically and mentally, but spiritually, too).
The next 40 days of Lent were created to give you time to ponder these very things and other points of life.
But most importantly, if you see folks today with a dark smudge on their foreheads (in the shape of a cross), you will at least now hopefully not walk up to them and say, “Hey, you’ve got something on your forehead.”
Just my thoughts,
S.
