Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of our Lenten journey towards Easter and eternal life. Now truly is our time to be healed and reconciled to God and to one another. The mark of ashes on our foreheads reminds us of our sinfulness and our turning back to God for forgiveness, healing and mercy. The ashes are made by the burning of palms from last year’s Palm Sunday — palms that were waved in victory and praise. After the priest sprinkles the ashes with holy water and incenses them, they are then placed on our foreheads in the shape of a Cross to remind us of our hope, and as he does so, he says the words “Remember, that thou art dust, and unto dust thou shalt return” or “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel”. We make no response to these words; we simply return to our pews. After we leave the church, we leave the ashes on our foreheads until they wear off naturally from the course of the day’s activities. They are a public witness to those things our society does not wish to embrace: the reality of death, and the hope of resurrection in Our Lord, Jesus Christ.
