Ash Wednesday is NOT a holy day of obligation.
That said, many people try to go to Mass on Ash Wednesday. Many, however, cannot.
Therefore, let us know about your good experiences of Holy Mass and the good points in the sermon, if there was on.
Was there a GOOD point made in the sermon you heard?
I wrote “good”. Let’s make this positive and edifying for the benefit of those who had to work or who were shut in or otherwise not able to go to Mass.
Tell about attendance especially for the Traditional Latin Mass. I hear that it is growing. Of COURSE.
Any local changes or (hopefully good) news?
Let’s have a poll.
Anyone can vote. Only registered and approved users can comment. And I hope you do!
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There was no homily at the morning Low Mass I attended.
My TLM was full to capacity and then some. For context, we have 2 TLMs each Sunday at our diocesan parish in order to accommodate the growing community (for comparison, 10 years ago we had only one TLM per Sunday). Since it was just one TLM Ash Wednesday mass, both groups had to share the same TLM today. The priest mentioned precisely what’s in your illustration, Fr. Z, regarding Ash Wednesday attendance vs. Sunday. He also expressed admiration at Ash Wednesday being so full when it is not even a holy day of obligation.
Where’s the option for “I’m eastern, so I’m going to the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts instead”?
When Eastern, Byzantine Catholics start using the Roman calendar and begin to observe Ash Wednesday, I’ll add that.
In the meantime, I believe the Great Fast has already begun after Cheesefare Sunday.
Local Domican church, N.O. but very trad-minded (unfortunately no Dominican rite Masses – yet). Ashes distributed by three Priests, after the Gospel, standing, although the altar-rail is still there. An older Priest (probably late 70s) imposed mine – not “memento etc” or even “remember man that thou art dust…” but “repent and believe the gospel”. Well, yes…
And, no problem whatsoever with reception of Communion on the tongue – albeit standing. No complaints about that, only Church in my town where it’s not a problem. And it always has a good attendance, plentiful confession, great preaching and Adoration. They’re building it (back) – and it’ll come.
Today we had an overflowing church, with no sermon, and in THE DARK! Our TLM parish was without power after the recent storms and it made Ash Wednesday feel a lot more like Tenebrae. It was a beautiful way to start off Lent: in darkness.
We usually go to Ash Wednesday services but couldn’t go today because we were snowed in. A late snowstorm today. We could have used it earlier this Winter.
We are visiting our son and his family in Big Bear, California. The priest at the parish here has had a brain tumor. After an operation and treatment, the tumor returned. Further treatment left him with neurological damage. He sat in a high bar-style chair bracing against a communion kneeler and distributed ashes for almost an hour. He is a beautiful soul. His sermon was just as beautiful, reminding everyone of the purpose of Ash Wednesday and Lent.
The church was mostly full of those of the Mexican culture (you can tell by the way they approach and the way they cross themselves before and after). At the end of Mass, the pastor, in Spanish, made and announcement saying “For the Latinos, we want you to know that we have Mass here every Sunday.” Everyone laughed, getting the point.
Attended the 12 noon TLM at our FSSP parish. Church was about half full but then there was also an 8 AM and 7 PM Mass, plus a 7 AM at the Oratory in a nearby city that is staffed by our priests.
Unfortunately I can’t remember our brief sermon for this mass, but last Sunday for Quinquagesima I was struck by something said in that sermon, that sometimes when we mortify ourselves by giving up things it can be a source of pride. As Paul says if we lack charity it is meaningless. Perhaps a better mortification would be through charity to others.
I was unable to get to Mass and receive ashes yesterday due to reasons beyond my control. In the past, I have preferred the formula, “Repent and believe in the Gospel,” for what it’s worth, when I receive ashes because it gives me an immediate and reachable goal to start Lent.
I must say, my employer, a podiatrist who is a fine Catholic family man, attended Mass at 6:28 AM (yes, Mass starts not at 6:30 AM, but at 6:28 AM!), which my husband attends daily, and he had no hesitation in wearing his ashes with humility all day when he saw his patients – and when he attended the Cleveland Cavs game last night, on the sidelines and televised locally, since he is also the team podiatrist.
So did many of his patients, young, old, and in between. As a matter of fact, my boss’ daughter, Michelle, who is a sophomore at a nearby university, called her father to tell him she felt so badly because she was unable to receive ashes due to her school schedule and the fact that her university is not Catholic (it is affiliated with the Methodists, I think). And she told him she is making every effort to attend Mass daily if possible throughout Lent. He was almost in tears of joy as he shared this with me (I am not only an employee, but a fellow parishioner and have known Michelle from her birth). I was also very moved by this but not surprised. The Catholic university students in our area are largely quite devout, whether they attend a state, Catholic, or non-Catholic university – thanks be to God! Blessed Lent!
I did go to Mass and received ashes, although I’m indifferent about the ashes. Also, I never understood why (in the Nervous Ordo anyway) at the Ash Wednesday Mass we have the reading with the order from Our Lord to “Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them” and yet we receive ashes on the forehead which is a public sign of a righteous deed.
Finally, I really am not sure what the Priest said when he imposed the ashes on my forehead. I’d have paid more attention had I known there would be a test.
Nearly 60 people at 7:30 am NO, average Saturday+Sunday total 150, another Mass at 10:00. No sermon, people need to get to work/school! No VO accessible from here by land.
Two EF Masses (sung) with blessing and imposition of ashes. I attended the one in the evening, attendance about half of a Sunday High Mass (usually well attended). A sermon was preached.
I know “Paenitemini, et credite Evangelio” (or a version of it in the vernacular) is a valid formula in the NO, but it never really appealed to me. At least in the EF one can be sure the traditional formula is used.
To L.’s point regarding the public wearing of ashes and the apparent contradiction with the Gospel of the day in the NO: I had long struggled with that disparity as well, and our parochial vicar brought it up in his homily this year. A couple of points he made may help here:
1. The Lord’s admonition against doing righteous deeds publicly is targeted at those who do them “in order that others may see them.” One’s heart is on trial here, not one’s forehead! If I am receiving ashes just because I want to “show them off” in some sort of strange inversion of humble pride, then my intention is questionable at best, and I may be guilty of what the Lord is warning against. If I am receiving ashes as a public sign of repentance and an acknowledgement that I am a sinner and in need of a Savior, then my purpose is not “that others may see them.”
2. Father underscored that Ash Wednesday is a day of public fasting, in which all Christians (or at least before the splits) were accustomed to joining in solidarity in petitioning God for His Mercy. He also reminded us that he would be imposing ashes as a symbol of our repentance on Ash Wednesday, but only on Ash Wednesday. Our penances are to continue throughout Lent, but the specifically-public aspect (i.e., ashes) does not continue.
3. A final point to ponder, although this wasn’t part of the homily: those words of the Lord that we hear in the NO Ash Wednesday Gospel also tell us to pray in our inner rooms in secret, yet most mainline Christian denominations (and of course Catholics and Orthodox) never have any problem with having a public expression of prayer, usually on Sundays! That line doesn’t seem to ruffle feathers :-)
We have been with the SSPX going on two years now. We only get Mass twice a month, so no Wednesday service. I cannot sit through an NO anymore and the SSPX prefers that we don’t. I was sick in bed anyway, so I stayed home.
My son attended a clownish NO (his words) to receive his ashes. He came home and shared them with us.