You may see people walking around with smudges of dirt on their foreheads on March 5 this year. While it’s possible they simply misjudged their eyeshadow placement or accidentally touched their forehead after furiously scribbling with a quill pen, they are more likely observing Ash Wednesday — the first day of Lent for many Christians.
Ash Wednesday marks the start of the Lenten season — a 40 day period observed by many Christians, predominantly by Catholics, Episcopalians, Lutherans, Presbyterians and Methodists in preparation for Easter. In many churches, the palm leaves from the previous Palm Sunday are burned and the ashes are used to create a cross symbol on the forehead of those who wish to receive it. Across many traditions, ashes are a symbol of mortality, and Ash Wednesday is an opportunity for Christians to reflect on this concept as well as their own experience with sin. Ash Wednesday is also an obligatory day of fasting within the Catholic Church.
“I think it’s important for there to be times communally that we recognize we are all the same. We all come from dust. We all return to dust. And in today’s day and age, kind of where we are culturally and politically, that feels kind of even more important to me this year,” Sarah Stell, director of education for children’s and college ministries at St. Augustine Chapel, said. “I think [Ash Wednesday] is inviting death to have a seat at the table and remembering, ‘oh yeah, this is, this is a part of life. This is a part of living.’”
Several other key dates within Lent are celebrated leading up to Easter, each with their own specific traditions.
Palm Sunday (April 13) marks the last Sunday before Easter. In the Bible, Jesus is greeted by a crowd carrying palm leaves. In various churches, patrons are given palms during church service on this day. In the Catholic tradition, the leftover palm leaves are turned to ash for the following year’s Ash Wednesday church service.
Maundy Thursday (April 17), also known as Holy Thursday, is technically the final day of Lent. This day commemorates Jesus’ celebration of Passover with his disciples, famously known as the Last Supper, and his washing of their feet, giving his final command.
Good Friday (April 18) is believed to be the day Jesus was crucified. This is often a very solemn day for those who observe it.
Holy Saturday (April 19) is the final day of preparation before Easter and represents the period between Jesus’ death and resurrection.
Easter Sunday (April 20), the most famous day related to Lent, is a day of joy for Christians. This day celebrates the return of Jesus to his people, following his crucifixion and death on the cross.
Across campus, community members are preparing for Ash Wednesday and the Lenten season to follow. Receiving ashes is the most visible way students may be participating in Ash Wednesday. Students can obtain these ashes through specific Ash Wednesday services or throughout campus this Wednesday. Ashes are generally mixed with water or oil and spread across the forehead in the shape of a cross.
Though the ashes made from St. Augustine’s last Palm Sunday were burned a few months ago, on March 5, they will be mixed with oil and given to anyone who wishes to receive them outside the Chapel.
“I’ve been thinking, ‘is it too much to have a fun death playlist? Do we want some music out there while doing ashes-to-go?’” Stell said.
The act of fasting is often done to strengthen a relationship with God in a variety of ways. This may be practiced to help understand Jesus’ suffering and sacrifice better, to separate oneself from worldly things or to redirect attention to God throughout the season of Lent. Though fasting can manifest for Christians in a variety of ways throughout Lent — especially in the “lenten sacrifice” many Christians undergo — certain denominations such as Catholicism specifically abstain from food on Ash Wednesday.
Cooper Watson, a sophomore, has been practicing fasting for a few weeks to ready himself for Ash Wednesday.
“Lenten season is a time to reform your relationship with God,” Watson said. “If there’s anything that’s troubling you with that relationship with Christ, it’s a time to pray about it, to give alms and to fast in furtherance of developing and maintaining that relationship with Christ. For me, it’s a rededication to the faith, a time of 40 days in which I strictly make Christ the center of my life.”
Prayer is a time for Christians to speak with God and grow closer to him through conversation. Certain Christian denominations also have specific prayers that their members can, or should, pray at specific times or throughout Lent. Prayer has been another important element of Watson’s preparation for Ash Wednesday.
“I think prayer is the foundation of your relationship with Christ.… [I’ve been] making prayer a habit that will continue throughout Lent,” Watson said.
There are a wide variety of resources available for students on Ash Wednesday, and there are no restrictions as to who may receive ashes
UCat — Vanderbilt’s Catholic ministry — will be tabling outside of Rand from 11-1 p.m. CST with ashes. They will also be hosting an Ash Wednesday service at 11:30 a.m. CST in Benton Chapel, as well as services at 7 a.m. CST, 12:10 p.m. CST and 5:30 p.m. CST at the Cathedral of the Incarnation.
Canterbury Circle, Vanderbilt’s Episcopal ministry, will be offering ashes to-go outside of the St. Augustine Chapel from 2-3 p.m. CST. In addition, they will be holding Ash Wednesday Imposition of Ashes and Eucharist services at 7 a.m. CST and 12 p.m. CST, and at 6 p.m. CST at the Center for Contemplative Justice.
Wesley, Vanderbilt’s Methodist ministry, will be offering ashes and lenten resources outside of Rand from 11 a.m-1 p.m. CST. The ministry will also be holding a free dinner at 5:30 p.m. CST followed by Ash Wednesday worship at 6:15 p.m. CST.
UKirk, Vanderbilt’s Presbyterian ministry, will be having a dinner at 5:30 p.m. CST followed by the Westminster Presbyterian church service at 6:30 p.m. CST.
In all, Ash Wednesday is an important day in the season of Lent for many Christians to strengthen their faith and relationship with God in preparation for Easter and the joyous period that follows. This can manifest in a variety of ways but generally focuses on solemnity and forms of abstinence, and leads to a jubilant time celebrating the return of Jesus to his people.
