Christians throughout
the Southland will observe Ash Wednesday, beginning the 40-day season of Lent,
when the faithful prepare for Easter by doing penance for sins and seeking
spiritual renewal through prayer, discipline and good works. Ash Wednesday gets
its name from the practice of placing ashes on the foreheads of the faithful as
a sign of penance. A minister or priest marks the forehead of each participant
with black ashes in the shape of a cross. In the Roman Catholic church, as the
ashes are applied to each individual’s forehead they are told, “Turn from sin
and live the Gospel.”
Catholics observe Ash
Wednesday by fasting, abstaining from meat and repentance. Other Christian
denominations make fasting optional, with the main focus being on repentance.
Roman Catholic Archbishop Jose H. Gomez will celebrate Ash Wednesday Mass at
noon at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. The Mass will be streamed live
on the cathedral’s website, olacathedral.org. Mass will be also celebrated at
the cathedral in English at 6:15, 7 and 8 a.m. and 5:15 p.m., and at 7 p.m. in
Spanish. A bilingual Liturgy of the Word will be celebrated at 3 p.m. Ashes
will be distributed during all services.
“During this Jubilee
Year of Mercy, let us make this Lent a time when we really make mercy the heart
of our identity as Christians,” Gomez said, referring to Pope Francis’ calling
an Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy to direct our attention and actions “on mercy
so that we may become a more effective sign of the Father’s actions in our
lives. “Mercy means action. Mercy means feeding the hungry, giving drink to the
thirsty, clothing the naked, sheltering the homeless, visiting the sick,
visiting the imprisoned, and burying the dead. “In our personal relationships,
mercy means having more patience and tenderness with those who are close to us.
Mercy means giving people the benefit of the doubt, giving them a second
chance. Mercy means forgiving others as we have been forgiven. “So during his
season of Lent, let us fast and pray that God will give us a merciful heart.”