What is Ash Wednesday?
ASH Wednesday is the beginning of the Lent, as many Christians watched. Lending is forty days before Easter and it is time to think about sins and crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. For many Christians, especially those in Protestant and Catholic households, ASH is also a day of fasting, and the day when one visits a mass or worship.
Sunday before Easter is called Palm Sunday. In many churches, the palms that Christians can maintain during the year are given. A few weeks before ASH on Wednesday next year, churches can ask people to return their palms to the church. They are normally burned, with small oil. The brand is worn for the rest of the day and should not be removed after sunset.
Wednesday is also a typical day for fasting in many Christian sects. This is the most common in Catholicism. People can stay any food before participating in ASH Wednesday and usually refrain from meat for the rest of the day. But not all Catholics follow these instructions.
The day before Wednesday Ash is often called Shove Tuesday or Mardi Gras and is a traditional day for party and feasting. People can indulge in all their favorite things, and especially in everything who plan to give up observations of fasting. With the advent of Wednesday, the path begins to give up the way for Lent, such as drinking or eating chocolate, which symbolizes sharing in Christ's simplicity. One is also repentant for sins committed during the year and promises to do better and be more Christianity in life.
Wednesday also symbolizes the Christian faith that people were made of dust and when they die, they return to dust and ashes. However, this faith is compensated by the belief that Christ's death allowed people to be more than just dust; It allowed eternal life in heaven, outside the body. It can be either a sharp reminder of what happens if Christ's regulations are not followed, or simply a symbol that does not die due to Christ.
There is no biblical description of the ash in the Roman Catholic or Protestant Bibles. However, there are numerous descriptions of people who mourn the ashes to mourn or express penalty. One can find links to ash and penitentity in books Samuel, Job, Esther, Matthew and Daniel.
ASH Wednesday falls every year on different days, as well as Easter. Easter is always celebrated on Sunday after the first full moon, which occurs after spring equinox. This is a bit confusing, because the way in which it is calculated is based on a lunar calendar, not the Gregorian or Julian calendar. However, as soon as Easter is calculated, one counts back for 46 days to reach the ash on Wednesday. This date is usually not before the beginning of February and no later than the beginning of March.
It should be noted that the Eastern Orthodox Churches use the Julian calendar, and thus arrive at another date for ashes and Easter. However, the Eastern Orthodox Church has lent in almost the same way asRoman Catholic Church.