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Don’t Rub Off Your Ashes, Urges Bishop [Catholic Caucus]
The Catholic Herald ^ | 3/3/11 | Anna Arco

Posted on 03/03/2011 7:31:54 AM PST by marshmallow

Catholics should try not to rub their ashes off after Ash Wednesday Mass, an English bishop has said.

Bishop Kieran Conry of Arundel and Brighton, who heads the department of evangelisation and catechesis, urged Catholics across Britain to wear “the outward sign of our inward sorrow for our sins and for our commitment to Jesus as Our Lord and Saviour”.

He said: “The wearing of the ashes provides us with a wonderful opportunity to share with people how important our faith is to us and to point them to the cross of Christ. I invite you where possible to attend a morning or lunchtime Mass.

“Please try not to rub off your ashes as soon as you leave church, but take the sign of the cross to all those that you meet – in your school, office, factory, wherever you may be. This might just make people curious and wonder why you would do this. If you explain about Lent and Easter it might just make them think and may even awaken in them the questions that might lead to faith. Many people have a dim awareness of Lent and even ashes. It would be good to make this clear rather than dim.

“Don’t underestimate the power of this simple action and wear your ashes as not only a sign of the beginning of your Lenten journey, but also to witness to your greatest treasure in life. This small step could awaken faith in the hearts of many that you meet in a way that words could never do.”

Catholics receive ashes at Mass on Ash Wednesday where they are reminded of their own mortality when the priest says “From ashes to ashes”. The ashes are made from the fronds of palm used on Palm Sunday of the previous year.


TOPICS: Catholic; Ministry/Outreach; Religion & Culture; Theology
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Ash Wednesday, next week.

"Remember man that thou art dust........"

1 posted on 03/03/2011 7:31:57 AM PST by marshmallow
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To: marshmallow

I quit smoking....Now what do I do????


2 posted on 03/03/2011 7:34:33 AM PST by Sacajaweau
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To: Sacajaweau

ha ha! Nah, now you can go to Church and pray that you stay off the habit. Btw, I’m not a smoker, but have friends who are and they find it incredibly hard to stop — is it so addictive?


3 posted on 03/03/2011 7:38:51 AM PST by Cronos ("They object to tradition saying that they themselves are wiser than the apostles" - Ire.III.2.2)
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To: Sacajaweau

Not to worry - Ash Wednesday is usually not a BYOA (Bring Your Own Ashes) event. :-)


4 posted on 03/03/2011 7:40:06 AM PST by peteram
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To: Cronos

Cronos,
Not to divert from the topic, but I was able to quit years ago using the Nicoderm patch. But it wasn’t so much the patch that did it, it was the little booklet that came with the patch that helped me to understand WHY I smoked. Tell your friends that once they figure out why the smoke, it makes it easier to quit.

....We now return you to the regular topic....


5 posted on 03/03/2011 7:43:50 AM PST by peteram
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To: marshmallow

I still remember the 1st time I ever saw someone with ashes on their head. I was about 20 years old. (I’m 52 now)

I was working downtown, and saw this person. I thought they had dirt on their face. It was a real “What the...” moment for me.


6 posted on 03/03/2011 7:48:13 AM PST by Responsibility2nd (Yes, as a matter of fact, what you do in your bedroom IS my business.)
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To: marshmallow

Brings back fond memories of when I was a kid in Catholic school. Don’t let one of the nuns catching you trying to rub off/in the ash. NEVER! They did say it was “acceptable” to wash it off before bedtime.


7 posted on 03/03/2011 7:55:10 AM PST by momtothree
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To: Responsibility2nd
I still remember the 1st time I ever saw someone with ashes on their head. I was about 20 years old. (I’m 52 now) I was working downtown, and saw this person. I thought they had dirt on their face. It was a real “What the...” moment for me.

Same thing for me too, except it was a co-worker that went to mass that morning and returned to work. I almost stuck my foot in my mouth, but luckily did not call his attention to the smudge on his forehead.

8 posted on 03/03/2011 7:55:25 AM PST by OB1kNOb (Watch this space.)
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To: Responsibility2nd
As a kid, we use to leave church and burn dead leaves around the corner from the church and then see who could put the most ashes on our forehead. That memory came back to me the first time I put camo on my face back in the 60’s
9 posted on 03/03/2011 7:56:57 AM PST by shadeaud ("If you can't beat them, arrange to have them beaten." -- George Carlin B)
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To: Responsibility2nd

My experience was spot-on the same as yours! I was working downtown in my 20’s and during lunch I started to notice people walking around with smudges on their forehead. It was a “what the...” moment for me as well!


10 posted on 03/03/2011 8:09:40 AM PST by TSgt (Colonel Allen West & Michele Bachman - 2012 POTUS Dream Team Ticket!)
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To: marshmallow

Wow, that church sure looks like St. Joe’s in Biddeford Maine!


11 posted on 03/03/2011 8:21:51 AM PST by massgopguy (I owe everything to George Bailey)
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To: Sacajaweau

Many, many non-Catholics come to the Ash Wednesday Mass to receive the ashes on their foreheard.

|Remember, man, thou art dust, and into dust thou shalt return.”


12 posted on 03/03/2011 8:31:24 AM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: netmilsmom; thefrankbaum; Tax-chick; GregB; saradippity; Berlin_Freeper; Litany; SumProVita; ...

Ping!


13 posted on 03/03/2011 2:00:55 PM PST by NYer ("Be kind to every person you meet. For every person is fighting a great battle." St. Ephraim)
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To: Sacajaweau

Don’t smoke. :)


14 posted on 03/03/2011 2:58:53 PM PST by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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To: momtothree

Yes!


15 posted on 03/03/2011 3:00:03 PM PST by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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To: Salvation; marshmallow
"Remember, man, thou art dust, and into dust thou shalt return.”

*****************************

There's something very comforting about that.

16 posted on 03/03/2011 3:03:02 PM PST by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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To: marshmallow
Don’t Rub Off Your Ashes, Urges Bishop [Catholic Caucus]
"When you fast. . .": An Ash Wednesday Post
Questions About Keeping the Ashes on Out in Public

Ash Wednesday in the Public Square (the phenomenon that draws in so many)
Ash Wednesday: It's Not Just For Catholics Anymore
Luxury hotel manager fired after making vulgar Ash Wednesday remarks
New York Palace Hotel boss Niklaus Leuenberger gets the door after Ash Wednesday slur
Homily for February 25, 2009 - Ash Wednesday - We just can’t live without ashes!

Remember, O Man [Ash Wednesday]
Ash Wednesday
The Day After Fat Tuesday [Ash Wednesday, Beginning of Lent]
Ash Wednesday and the Lenten Fast-Family observance Lenten season [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Other Christians embrace Lent: "We are reclaiming a sense of history"

More Protestants turn to Ash Wednesday
Being Catholic: Sacred Things, Ashes
Ash Wednesday
Where does Ash Wednesday get its ashes?
Every Ash Wednesday comes the question about ashes: to burn or to buy?

Pope will preside at Ash Wednesday Mass, procession; act will renew ancient tradition
Ash Wednesday: Preparing For Easter
Ash Wednesday: Our Shifting Understanding of Lent
Ash Wednesday

17 posted on 03/03/2011 3:26:34 PM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: marshmallow
Here's a fake Catholic on Ash Wednesday:


18 posted on 03/03/2011 3:35:46 PM PST by nascarnation
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To: marshmallow

It never even occurred to me to wipe off the ashes. To the contrary, I tend to be very upset if the ashes fade over the course of the day. I only became Catholic (Anglo-Catholic) a few years ago, so maybe my newness has something to do with my view.

At my old job- hauling loads and driving trucks- I would frequently get jokes about having grease or oil on my face. I’d take them with a laugh and a smile, and offer some kind of joke as a reply so that it was clear I was not going to be so easily riled. It occasionally led to someone asking about the ashes.

I can’t wrap my mind around wiping the ashes off....


19 posted on 03/03/2011 3:56:43 PM PST by HushTX (If the best defense is a good offense, it's a good thing I'm really offensive.)
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To: marshmallow

I got question what happen if you have oily skin I am serious they rub on me won’t take I being serious


20 posted on 03/03/2011 4:03:03 PM PST by SevenofNine ("We are Freepers, all your media belong to us ,resistance is futile")
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