Why are ashes put on our foreheads every Ash Wednesday!?
Why a Cross on the Forehead?
The first recorded reference to a cross on the forehead is from the Old Testament in the Book of Ezekiel 9:4, "Go through the city of Jerusalem and put a TAU, a “T,” on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it."
From the Book of Revelation we read, “Do not damage the land or the sea or the trees until we put the seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” Revelation 7:3
Why Ashes- Ashes in the Bible
-The prophet Jeremiah, for example, calls for repentance this way: "O daughter of my people, gird on sackcloth, roll in the ashes" (Jer 6:26).
-The prophet Isaiah, stated, "Is this the manner of fasting I wish, of keeping a day of penance: that a man bow his head like a reed, and lie in sackcloth and ashes? Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?" (Is 58:5).
-The prophet Daniel pleaded for God to rescue Israel, "I turned to the Lord God, pleading in earnest prayer, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes" (Dn 9:3).
-The prophet Jonah brought about this, "When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in the ashes" (Jon 3:6).
-The Maccabees prepared for battle using ashes, “That day they fasted and wore sackcloth; they sprinkled ashes on their heads and tore their clothes" (1 Mc 3:47; see also 4:39).
In the Church
At first, clerics and men had ashes sprinkled on their heads, while women had the sign of the cross made with ashes on their foreheads. Eventually, of course, the ritual used with women came to be used for men as well. In the 12th century the rule developed that the ashes were to be created by burning palm branches from the previous Palm Sunday.
Ash Wednesday After Vatican II
The Second Vatican Council (1962-65) called for the renewal of Lent, recovering its ancient baptismal character. Since Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, it naturally is called to be baptismal in nature. The marking of foreheads is also found during the rite of baptism. The first symbolic gesture of the rite of baptism is the marking of an infant’s head with a cross. It is a clear call to conversion, to that movement away from sin and toward Christ that we have to embrace over and over again through our lives.
From Ashes to the Font
We move through Lent from ashes to the baptismal font. More profoundly, we embrace the need to die to sin and selfishness at the beginning of Lent so that we can come to fuller life in the Risen One at Easter. When we receive ashes on our foreheads, we remember who we are. We remember that we are creatures of the earth, "Remember that you are dust.” We remember that we are mortal beings, "and to dust you will return." We remember that we are baptized. We remember that we are people on a journey of conversion.
A reminder that Ash Wednesday is a Day of FASTING and ABSTINENCE: No Meat and Less Food