By receiving ashes and keeping them on, we publicly proclaim our intent to die to our worldly desires and live even more in Christ's image, which we focus on during the season of 'rebirth' that is Lent (a Latin term for 'Spring').
The ash cross marking observers' foreheads is meant to represent mortality and penance for their sins. It is applied by a priest during a morning mass, often along with a small blessing: "Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return." Many choose to keep it on all day.
On Ash Wednesday, Catholics and many other Christians will have ashes applied to their foreheads in the shape of a cross. People generally wear the ashes — which symbolize penance, mourning and mortality — throughout the day to publicly express their faith and penance.
There is no requirement to keep ashes on the forehead all day or for any period of time after they are given, but many Christians choose to keep them on their foreheads throughout the day on Ash Wednesday.
The ashes symbolize both death and repentance. During this period, Christians show repentance and mourning for their sins, because they believe Christ died for them.
The ashes symbolize penance and the dust from which God made people. When priests mark Christian's forehead the ashes they often say, “Repent and believe in the Gospel,” or “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
It is typical to receive ashes on your forehead in the Sign of the Cross. Similar to taking communion at Mass, you usually process toward the altar to get ashes. The priest will make the Sign of the Cross and say one of two things: “Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.”
There is no obligation to leave ashes on the forehead for a particular period of time. Some wipe them off right away, some leave them for the day. Certainly, every Catholic should wipe them away before Easter!
To set the faithful straight, the Vatican said ashes and bone fragments cannot be kept at home, since that would deprive the Christian community as a whole of remembering the dead. Rather, church authorities should designate a sacred place, such as a cemetery or church area, to hold them.
Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are obligatory days of fasting and abstinence for Catholics. In addition, Fridays during Lent are obligatory days of abstinence. For members of the Latin Catholic Church, the norms on fasting are obligatory from age 18 until age 59.
If a Catholic family chooses cremation, the Church requires reverent disposition of the ashes. The Vatican says the ashes must be treated in the same way a body would be. The ashes are to be kept in a sacred place, the Church says, not in one's home, scattered, or divided among family members.
The newest guidelines from the Vatican state that Catholic people can be cremated, but their ashes should not be scattered at sea, and the urn should not be kept in the home. The guidelines state that the cremains should be kept in a sacred place like a church cemetery.
Quite obviously, signing ourselves is a mark of our belief in the saving actions of Jesus Christ. We also make the sign in the name of the Holy Trinity by invoking Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
“Catholic teachings tell us to refrain from eating meat on Fridays as an act of penance," Sheila Wolf LeBouef wrote. "Friday is a day of penitence, as it is believed Christ died on a Friday. Everyone has the right to either eat meat or not.
The “sign of the cross” is made by saying the Trinitarian invocation while touching one's right hand to the forehead first (Father), then to the lower chest or stomach (Son), then to the left shoulder and the right shoulder (Holy Spirit), and closing with both our hands together for assent (Amen).
Some people believe that it is a sin to miss receiving ashes on this day. Some even believe that one would not go to heaven if he or she were not marked with blessed ashes. Neither is true. (Ash Wednesday is not even a holy day of obligation!)
Why is Fasting Part of Ash Wednesday? Fasting is a way for Christians to honor the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross. It is believed that by fasting, Christians are preparing themselves to fully celebrate and share in his resurrection.
"This rite may be celebrated by a priest or deacon who may be assisted by lay ministers in the distribution of the ashes. The blessing of the ashes, however, is reserved to a priest or deacon."
There are no set implications of keeping ashes in the house. By keeping ashes in the house, you will be allowing the psychic connection between the deceased loved one and the remaining family members to continue, which often helps grieving families come to terms with their loss.
During cremation, the body parts that do burn consist of organs, soft tissue, hair, and skin, while the water in our bodies evaporates. The body parts that do not burn are bone fragments.
Alongside serving the poor, burying or interring of the dead is a very important aspect of our Catholic faith. remembering and honoring them called a funeral which prepares the person who has died to enter into new and everlasting life with Jesus and helps the family mourn their loss.
It is not required that a worshiper wear the ashes for the rest of the day, although many Christians choose to do so. However, dining out or doing non-essential shopping are considered inappropriate on Ash Wednesday.
Similarly, do not remove the ashes by trying to wash them off! Instead, rub them off with a towel (not moistened with water) followed by, as the text from Matthew's Gospel suggests, some olive oil or other vegetable oil to help remove the residue.
By having their foreheads marked with the sign of the cross, this symbolizes that the person belongs to Jesus Christ, who died on a Cross. This is the imitation of the spiritual mark or seal that is put on a Christian in baptism, when he is delivered from sin.