Ash Wednesday and amusing anecdote by boris

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Ash Wednesday and amusing anecdote

POSTED BY: BORIS
UPDATED: Tuesday, February 23, 2010 02:46
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Wednesday, February 17, 2010 2:19 AM

every year at this time I reflect back on my first ash Wednesday experience:
I was 5 and had just started catholic primary school.I was only half attentive as usual when sister Jane Francis was explaining what happens on Ash Wednesday. I freaked out and had a screaming ranting meltdown ...noone was gonna pull out my eyelashes and burn them up so they could use them at mass for something to do with Jesus and the holy spirit...I didn't care how important God thought his son was my eyelashes were staying put thankyou very much. anyway my mother had to be called. she made me stay until the other kids came back from mass so that I could see they all still had their eyelashes. by then I'd calmed down and she was able to tell me what ashes were exactly (even though I was bilingual,at that stage I'd only heard the Italian word for ashes (cenere) Mum calmly explained that there were ashes not eyelashes used in the ceremony and that they were made by burning palms...then I felt ripped off that I'd have to wait a whole year to get my forehead shmeared.

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Wednesday, February 17, 2010 4:37 AM

ZEEK

All I know is every year I listen to the readings and just go "wtf?". It's all about how people who fast and then make a big show of it are jerks. Then we're all "hey lets fast and put a big smudge on our forehead so everyone knows we're fasting". Do they even listen to what they're saying?

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Friday, February 19, 2010 12:58 PM

BORIS

when I was little, I would daydream through the mass every year until it was ash receiving time. then I'd pretend I was an amazon who'd just been initiated and was out for their first solo hunt etc...I think the religious significance of the ceremony was lost on me.

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Friday, February 19, 2010 1:26 PM

ZEEK

Quote:
Originally posted by boris:
when I was little, I would daydream through the mass every year until it was ash receiving time. then I'd pretend I was an amazon who'd just been initiated and was out for their first solo hunt etc...I think the religious significance of the ceremony was lost on me.

lol yeah pretty standard to day dream as a little kid. Makes me wonder what parents think their kids are picking up from a mass. Forcing your kid to go to mass is like forced day dream time.

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Friday, February 19, 2010 4:07 PM

FEARTHEBUNNYMAN

Quote:
Originally posted by Zeek:
All I know is every year I listen to the readings and just go "wtf?". It's all about how people who fast and then make a big show of it are jerks. Then we're all "hey lets fast and put a big smudge on our forehead so everyone knows we're fasting". Do they even listen to what they're saying?

Its a lesson in humility. The ashes are a sign of sorrow for your sins (against God, others, and yourself) and your faults. The point is to inculcate the appropriate mindset - while everyone will be -well, ideally- fasting and praying, you are doing so in private, out of contrition and desire to be closer with God, and not as a public show of "look how pious I am". (technically you are not even supposed to tell anyone other than your confessor what you are "giving up" for Lent, but it such a time-honored tradition;p) The ashes are particularly embarrassing to have to wear as a teen ;) but again, you wear them as a sign of sorrow and of your own flaws (and mortality), and not as a "holier-then-thou" thing.

Myself, I'm giving up Lent for Lent ;)

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Tuesday, February 23, 2010 2:46 AM

BORIS

I gave up Catholiscism for lent over twenty years ago, and never picked it back up after that. I went to catholic schools, my dad worked for the Vatican embassy...I was all catholicked out by the end of my teens. No disrespect for anyone who follows the faith.

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