Ash Wednesday Service

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, the forty day period (not counting Sundays) preceeding Easter. The Lenten season is a preparation for celebrating Easter. Historically, Lent began as a period of fasting, then became a time of penance by all Christians.

 

Ash Wednesday emphasizes a dual encounter: we confront our own mortality and confess our sin before God within the community of faith. The use of ashes as a sign of mortality and repentance has a long history in Jewish and Christian worship, and the Imposition of Ashes can be a powerful non-verbal, and experiential way of participating in the call to repentance and reconciliation.