These palms are gathered, burned, and then sifted, and placed in a shallow dish for the imposition. The ashes for this ceremony are taken from the palm branches of the previous year’s Palm Sunday service. Thus, Trinity Orthodox Lutheran Church in Sierra Vista has incorporated the practice of “The Imposition of Ashes” into its observance of Ash Wednesday and the season of Lent. Today it is observed by faithful Believers in many Christian churches throughout the world.
It was already being practiced hundreds of years before the church of Rome gained its current prominence. The imposition of ashes has never been an exclusive practice of the Roman church. ” words that will someday be spoken over us all. earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Indeed, we remember well the words from the Christian burial service: “. The ashes are a strong reminder of the need for God’s mercy, forgiveness, and the redeeming grace of Christ. It is this ancient practice of placing ashes on the heads of the faithful that gives Ash Wednesday its name. This has been the normal practice of the Christian Church from the First Century onward. Thus, the first New Testament believers adopted the use of ashes as a symbol of sorrow and repentance over sin. Ashes are a sign of spiritual cleansing, as in the Rite of the Red Heifer (Numbers 19:17), in which the ashes of the calf, when mixed with water, had the ceremonial effect of purifying the sinner. In addition, for more than nineteen centuries the Christian believer’s Lenten journey has begun with a reminder of our mortality and a call to repentance through the placing of ashes on one’s head (Genesis 18:27, Job 42:6, Jeremiah 6:26, Matthew 11:21). This also explains why this season begins on a Wednesday.
Since all regular Sunday worship services are an observance of Christ’s resurrection, and thus occasions for reverent joy, the Sundays during this period are not counted in the forty days of more somber remembrance of Christ's Passion.
The forty days are counted backward from Resurrection Sunday. Sinai at the giving of the law, Elijah's fast on his way to the mountain of God, and Jesus' forty-day fast at the beginning of His ministry, among others. The forty days are reminiscent of several biblical events: Moses' stay on Mt. Lent is the Christian's forty-day journey with the Lord to the cross and tomb, preparing for the joyous celebration of Christ’s Resurrection. The Wednesday before the first Sunday in Lent marks the beginning of this season of the Church Year.
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