Our two neighbors Jessie and Chipi normally sleep in past 6:00 AM. I know because I get up very early and these kids, they are in their mid-twenties, are never up before 7:00 AM.
Not only were they up but they were dresses and leaving.
Donde van? (Where are you going?)
Por la iglesia?
To Church? Hmmm
It came to me quick, ah, it's ash Wednesday.
Sign up for 3 Free months of Hallow Plus no credit card required
We chatted briefly and they were on their way to get ashed before they go to work.
I went in to our room to ask my wife what the significance or why is there an ash Wednesday but she was praying and gave me the finger over her lips shhhh.
I filled my coffee to sit down to see if Youtube had the answer and first up was Father Mike.
Father Mike is part of a popular Catholic Youtube Channel named Ascension Presents that has many videos buy Father Mike and others from the Church including nuns.
The video that came up was good but not exactly what I was looking for, you can see it here:
Father Mike is also part of the Hallow team, an app for Catholics and even non-Catholics like me.
I took the following from CatholicAnswers.com
Eventually, the use of ashes was adapted to mark the beginning of Lent, the 40-day preparation period (not including Sundays) for Easter. The ritual for the “Day of Ashes” is found in the earliest editions of the Gregorian Sacramentary which dates at least to the 8th century. About the year 1000, an Anglo-Saxon priest named Aelfric preached, “We read in the books both in the Old Law and in the New that the men who repented of their sins bestrewed themselves with ashes and clothed their bodies with sackcloth. Now let us do this little at the beginning of our Lent that we strew ashes upon our heads to signify that we ought to repent of our sins during the Lenten fast.” As an aside, Aelfric reinforced his point by then telling of a man who refused to go to Church on Ash Wednesday and receive ashes; the man was killed a few days later in a boar hunt. Since the Middle Ages, the Church has used ashes to mark the beginning of the penitential season of Lent, when we remember our mortality and mourn for our sins.
The post I took this from gives the reason dating back to the Old Testaments and I recommend it as a good read. CatholicAnswers.com
Now I just have to ask my wife if it is OK for a non-Catholic to be ashed.
My guess is it is best to wait until after I am baptized but I will fast today and follow the fasting rituals until Easter.
My journey started with Father Williamson's plea to just Pray The Rosary for 30 days.
I am a witness to the power of prayer as it has completely changed my life for the better.
Check out my previous post Proof: The Power Of Prayer.
I will continue to detail my journey to Catholicism here on Inleo.com
If you have not joined Inleo.io you will need a Hive account and you can sign up for free using my link and sign up for Hive for free using Inleo.io
If you have not repented the first day of Lent would be a great day to start.
God bless you all.
