The use of contemporary news stories and ashes focuses on our need for a Savior.
Worship
GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD
WORSHIP SERVICES FOR ASH WEDNESDAY AND HOLY WEEK
It was Ash Wednesday, and a woman sifting in a crowded Catholic church, leaned over to the young man next to her and asked: "What is it that brings so many people out on a cold night, to get a little dirt smeared on their foreheads, and to be reminded that they are sinners and that they are going to die?" He looked at her somewhat oddly and said, "It's habit, I guess."
It must be more than habit. Ash Wednesday strikes a responsive chord in many people. Its theme has a peculiar appeal. It is a time to reflect that we are sinners, that life is finite and that we are but ashes. But it is something we need to do on occasion. It is a time to confront the failings of ourselves and of our society. It is a time to lay it all on the table and to see who we are and what we are. The mood is penitence and reflection on the quality of our faith and life.
The Ashes
Although many Protestant churches observe Ash Wednesday, a lesser number have actually used the tradition of the imposition of ashes on the foreheads of worshipers. If this is a new practice for your congregation, it will certainly be wise to discuss it well in advance with the proper worship or planning committee; also announce it in such a way that worshipers will know that the imposition of ashes will be entirely a voluntary matter. For those persons who wish to use this tradition, the use of ashes can be a very significant symbolic act to enhance the meaning of Ash Wednesday worship.
Ashes can either be purchased or prepared beforehand. In liturgical tradition, "Ashes are prepared for this service by burning palm (or olive) branches from the previous Palm Sunday and grinding the ashes into powder by working them through a wire sieve with a spoon and perhaps mixing the ashes with a little water or oil,"1 Place the mixture in a small shallow vessel or a glass dish from which the ashes can be imposed. Provide a damp towel or napkin for cleansing the minister's hands after the imposition.
Ashes may be prepared privately or as part of the Shrove Tuesday activity in the congregation. As a conclusion of this "eve of the Fast" celebration, the palms could be burned in a fireplace or in the church in a clean outdoor barbeque grill. Cut the palms into short pieces to facilitate burning. If branches from the previous Palm Sunday are not available, a local florist may have some at a nominal cost. Do not use ashes from someone's fireplace, since there may be impurities or irritating substances in them.
When persons come forward to receive the ashes, they may kneel or stand. The ashes are applied with the thumb in the form of a small cross on the forehead. The minister may use the words, "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return," in addressing each person. Silence is more appropriate for this time than any music. It may be suggested to the congregation to meditate on Psalm 90 during the receiving of the sign of the cross with the ashes.
Suggestions for Planning
It is suggested to have three persons assigned as Readers, to take the parts indicated in the "Ash Wednesday Reflections." Readers may also be responsible for the Old and New Testament Scriptures.
Important: A number of sample headline news stories are listed in the reader's parts of the Ash Wednesday Reflections. To make this really contemporary, take newspapers (or check television news) from two to three days prior to the service, and substitute current news stories which people will recognize. This needs to be done to make this section as meaningful as possible.
In the Ash Wednesday Reflections, Readers 2 and 3 should convey the impression that they are reading their news items directly from the newspaper. The burning of the newspaper symbolizes "taking the wrongdoing out of God's sight." In order to do this with a minimum of worry and risk, find a charcoal burner about table height, and have it in place with a few hot coals in it at the beginning of the service. Give the Readers a single sheet of newspaper (approximately 14" x 20" or smaller), enough to show what is happening. The Reader can tear the paper into a manageable size, wrinkle it a bit, and place it on the hot coals. When the burning of the newspaper is completed, have someone remove the charcoal burner and place it outside or in a safe place, so that you and the congregation won't have to worry about it.
If an offering is customary, it may be included at the time of one of the hymns, or an offering basket may be placed at the door.
The Ash Wednesday Reflections, using news stories, is based on an original service, written by Pat Schnapp, and was used at St. Thomas More Parish, in Bowling Green, Ohio.
1. Manual on the Liturgy, Lutheran Book of Worship; Augsburg Publishing House, 1979. Page 307. Quote above begins with 'Ashes are prepared ... (and concludes with) ... to facilitate burning."
Ash Wednesday
Quiet Meditation (No Prelude)
Invocation (Minister)
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort. (Romans 1:7;
2 Corinthians 1:3; RSV)
Psalm 51 (In unison) Selected verses (Psalm 51:1-4, 9-12: NIV)
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight. (1-4)
Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. (9-12)
PRAYER (Minister)
Almighty God: you love all your children, and do not hate them for their sins. Help us to face up to ourselves, to admit we are in the wrong, and to reach with confidence for your mercy; in Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.
(From The Worshipbook, Westminster Press, 1970 Joint Committee on Worship for Presbyterian Churches, p. 142)
Hymn
"Beneath the Cross of Jesus"
Ash Wednesday Reflections
Reader 1:
Sound the trumpet in Zion!
Order a fast!
Proclaim a solemn assembly!
Call the people together,
summon the community,
assemble the elders,
gather the children,
even the infants at the breast,
Let the bridegroom leave his bedroom
and the bride her alcove.
Between vestibule and altar let the priests,
the ministers of the people, lament.
(AS A SYMBOLIC GESTURE OF PENITENCE, THE MINISTER MAY APPROACH THE ALTAR AND KNEEL DURING A MOMENT OF SILENCE.)
Minister:
Spare your people, Lord!
Do not make your heritage a thing of shame,
a mockery to the nations!
Why should outsiders say, "Where is their God?"
Let us return to the Lord with all our heart,
fasting, mourning, weeping.
Reader 1:
Cry out full-throated and unsparingly,
lift up your voice like a trumpet blast!
Tell my people their wickedness
and the house of Jacob their sins.
Do you call this a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?
Reader 2:
A seven-year-old girl, who got off the school bus three blocks from her home, disappeared and never made it home. Last week her name was put on the missing children list.
Reader 3:
In Common Pleas Court, an area man pleaded guilty yesterday to passing bad checks.
Reader 2:
A Los Angeles woman was found guilty of four charges of trafficking in obscenity in Miami, Florida.
Reader 1:
Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
Reader 3:
A Chicago financier has been accused of fraud by a grand jury and awaits sentencing.
Reader 2:
Trial dates have been set for three persons charged in connection with the January death of a Detroit man, found in his home with his throat cut. One of the persons charged is his son, aged nineteen.
Reader 3:
A man, convicted of trying to extort two million dollars from an airline by planting a bomb, was sentenced Wednesday to twelve years in prison.
Reader 1:
Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
Reader 2:
Crosses were burned and shots were fired outside of the homes of three black families in a northern city last night.
Reader 3:
Police are questioning acquaintances of a twelve-year-old girl bludgeoned to death last week in an abandoned theater. She had been sexually molested.
Reader 2:
A freshman student died at the University of Michigan during a hazing incident which one fraternity member described as "cruel and sick, but not unusual."
Reader 1:
Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord? Take your wrongdoings out of my sight.
(READERS 2 AND 3 BURN THEIR NEWSPAPERS)
Reader 1:
Rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to the way of the Lord.
Old Testament Reading for Ash Wednesday
Minister
or
Reader:
The name of Jonah is a familiar name. He was a reluctant prophet who ended up accomplishing God's purpose. These verses describe Jonah's warning and Nineveh's remarkable response to it.
Jonah 3:1-10
New Testament Reading
Minister
or
Reader:
In the second lesson, James reminds us of the uncertainty and the shortness of human life.
James 4:13-17
The Gospel
Minister:
One of the familiar parables of Jesus is this one in the Gospel of St. Luke, in which he compares the attitudes of two men who went to the temple to pray.
Luke 18:9-14
This is the Word of the Lord.
Hymn
"Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life"
or
"Dear Lord and Father of Mankind"
A Message for Ash Wednesday
Receiving the sign of the cross with ashes (Voluntary for those who desire)
Minister:
Ashes are a sign of repentance, humility, and frailty. They remind us of our total dependence on God. Before you approach to receive the sign of the cross with ashes, reflect on the meaning of this action:
Do you accept responsibility for your personal sins? (You may answer "I do.")
Do you accept responsibility for that evil in the world which your apathy and indifference have allowed? (You may answer "Yes.")
Do you desire to return to the Lord with your whole heart, and to seek his forgiveness and strength? (You may answer "I do.")
Do you believe that, to be a follower of Jesus, you must deny yourself and take up your cross daily? (You may answer "I believe.")
Do you believe it is foolish to work for great achievements or success if you destroy your soul in the process? (You may answer "Yes.")
Do you believe in the mercy of God, which is constant and more vast than all the evil in the world? (You may answer "Yes, I do believe.")
Take now, then, these ashes, and return to the Lord with your whole heart.
(PERSONS MAY COME FORWARD, AND EITHER KNEELING OR STANDING, RECEIVE THE SIGN OF THE CROSS WITH ASHES ON THEIR FOREHEAD. THE MINISTER MAY SAY THESE WORDS TO EACH PERSON: "REMEMBER THAT YOU ARE
DUST, AND TO DUST YOU SHALL RETURN.")
Reader 1:
From bonfire and arsonist's blaze,
From the coal stove and the crematorium -
Ashes.
Blighted with mortality
We carry ourselves to the ash pile of our death,
Yet need reminding:
There is no lasting city here,
To dust we shall return.
Reader 2:
A gray smudge on our foreheads
Like our smudged, imperfect lives,
Streaked with selfishness,
Singed by the angers, jealousies, greed and
Lust that flame within,
Dying embers of good intentions compromised, forgotten.
Ashen remains of resolutions soon burnt out.
Reader 3:
As we wear the sign of the cross with ashes,
We enter our Lent,
To emerge, like the fabled Phoenix,
Fresh-fashioned on Easter.
The Lord's Prayer (All pray together)
The Benediction
May the warmth of his love,
the light of his truth,
and the peace of his promise
go with you and remain with you. Amen.
Hymn
"I Lay My Sins on Jesus"
or
"Take Up Your Cross, the Savior Said"
It must be more than habit. Ash Wednesday strikes a responsive chord in many people. Its theme has a peculiar appeal. It is a time to reflect that we are sinners, that life is finite and that we are but ashes. But it is something we need to do on occasion. It is a time to confront the failings of ourselves and of our society. It is a time to lay it all on the table and to see who we are and what we are. The mood is penitence and reflection on the quality of our faith and life.
The Ashes
Although many Protestant churches observe Ash Wednesday, a lesser number have actually used the tradition of the imposition of ashes on the foreheads of worshipers. If this is a new practice for your congregation, it will certainly be wise to discuss it well in advance with the proper worship or planning committee; also announce it in such a way that worshipers will know that the imposition of ashes will be entirely a voluntary matter. For those persons who wish to use this tradition, the use of ashes can be a very significant symbolic act to enhance the meaning of Ash Wednesday worship.
Ashes can either be purchased or prepared beforehand. In liturgical tradition, "Ashes are prepared for this service by burning palm (or olive) branches from the previous Palm Sunday and grinding the ashes into powder by working them through a wire sieve with a spoon and perhaps mixing the ashes with a little water or oil,"1 Place the mixture in a small shallow vessel or a glass dish from which the ashes can be imposed. Provide a damp towel or napkin for cleansing the minister's hands after the imposition.
Ashes may be prepared privately or as part of the Shrove Tuesday activity in the congregation. As a conclusion of this "eve of the Fast" celebration, the palms could be burned in a fireplace or in the church in a clean outdoor barbeque grill. Cut the palms into short pieces to facilitate burning. If branches from the previous Palm Sunday are not available, a local florist may have some at a nominal cost. Do not use ashes from someone's fireplace, since there may be impurities or irritating substances in them.
When persons come forward to receive the ashes, they may kneel or stand. The ashes are applied with the thumb in the form of a small cross on the forehead. The minister may use the words, "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return," in addressing each person. Silence is more appropriate for this time than any music. It may be suggested to the congregation to meditate on Psalm 90 during the receiving of the sign of the cross with the ashes.
Suggestions for Planning
It is suggested to have three persons assigned as Readers, to take the parts indicated in the "Ash Wednesday Reflections." Readers may also be responsible for the Old and New Testament Scriptures.
Important: A number of sample headline news stories are listed in the reader's parts of the Ash Wednesday Reflections. To make this really contemporary, take newspapers (or check television news) from two to three days prior to the service, and substitute current news stories which people will recognize. This needs to be done to make this section as meaningful as possible.
In the Ash Wednesday Reflections, Readers 2 and 3 should convey the impression that they are reading their news items directly from the newspaper. The burning of the newspaper symbolizes "taking the wrongdoing out of God's sight." In order to do this with a minimum of worry and risk, find a charcoal burner about table height, and have it in place with a few hot coals in it at the beginning of the service. Give the Readers a single sheet of newspaper (approximately 14" x 20" or smaller), enough to show what is happening. The Reader can tear the paper into a manageable size, wrinkle it a bit, and place it on the hot coals. When the burning of the newspaper is completed, have someone remove the charcoal burner and place it outside or in a safe place, so that you and the congregation won't have to worry about it.
If an offering is customary, it may be included at the time of one of the hymns, or an offering basket may be placed at the door.
The Ash Wednesday Reflections, using news stories, is based on an original service, written by Pat Schnapp, and was used at St. Thomas More Parish, in Bowling Green, Ohio.
1. Manual on the Liturgy, Lutheran Book of Worship; Augsburg Publishing House, 1979. Page 307. Quote above begins with 'Ashes are prepared ... (and concludes with) ... to facilitate burning."
Ash Wednesday
Quiet Meditation (No Prelude)
Invocation (Minister)
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort. (Romans 1:7;
2 Corinthians 1:3; RSV)
Psalm 51 (In unison) Selected verses (Psalm 51:1-4, 9-12: NIV)
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight. (1-4)
Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. (9-12)
PRAYER (Minister)
Almighty God: you love all your children, and do not hate them for their sins. Help us to face up to ourselves, to admit we are in the wrong, and to reach with confidence for your mercy; in Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.
(From The Worshipbook, Westminster Press, 1970 Joint Committee on Worship for Presbyterian Churches, p. 142)
Hymn
"Beneath the Cross of Jesus"
Ash Wednesday Reflections
Reader 1:
Sound the trumpet in Zion!
Order a fast!
Proclaim a solemn assembly!
Call the people together,
summon the community,
assemble the elders,
gather the children,
even the infants at the breast,
Let the bridegroom leave his bedroom
and the bride her alcove.
Between vestibule and altar let the priests,
the ministers of the people, lament.
(AS A SYMBOLIC GESTURE OF PENITENCE, THE MINISTER MAY APPROACH THE ALTAR AND KNEEL DURING A MOMENT OF SILENCE.)
Minister:
Spare your people, Lord!
Do not make your heritage a thing of shame,
a mockery to the nations!
Why should outsiders say, "Where is their God?"
Let us return to the Lord with all our heart,
fasting, mourning, weeping.
Reader 1:
Cry out full-throated and unsparingly,
lift up your voice like a trumpet blast!
Tell my people their wickedness
and the house of Jacob their sins.
Do you call this a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?
Reader 2:
A seven-year-old girl, who got off the school bus three blocks from her home, disappeared and never made it home. Last week her name was put on the missing children list.
Reader 3:
In Common Pleas Court, an area man pleaded guilty yesterday to passing bad checks.
Reader 2:
A Los Angeles woman was found guilty of four charges of trafficking in obscenity in Miami, Florida.
Reader 1:
Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
Reader 3:
A Chicago financier has been accused of fraud by a grand jury and awaits sentencing.
Reader 2:
Trial dates have been set for three persons charged in connection with the January death of a Detroit man, found in his home with his throat cut. One of the persons charged is his son, aged nineteen.
Reader 3:
A man, convicted of trying to extort two million dollars from an airline by planting a bomb, was sentenced Wednesday to twelve years in prison.
Reader 1:
Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
Reader 2:
Crosses were burned and shots were fired outside of the homes of three black families in a northern city last night.
Reader 3:
Police are questioning acquaintances of a twelve-year-old girl bludgeoned to death last week in an abandoned theater. She had been sexually molested.
Reader 2:
A freshman student died at the University of Michigan during a hazing incident which one fraternity member described as "cruel and sick, but not unusual."
Reader 1:
Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord? Take your wrongdoings out of my sight.
(READERS 2 AND 3 BURN THEIR NEWSPAPERS)
Reader 1:
Rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to the way of the Lord.
Old Testament Reading for Ash Wednesday
Minister
or
Reader:
The name of Jonah is a familiar name. He was a reluctant prophet who ended up accomplishing God's purpose. These verses describe Jonah's warning and Nineveh's remarkable response to it.
Jonah 3:1-10
New Testament Reading
Minister
or
Reader:
In the second lesson, James reminds us of the uncertainty and the shortness of human life.
James 4:13-17
The Gospel
Minister:
One of the familiar parables of Jesus is this one in the Gospel of St. Luke, in which he compares the attitudes of two men who went to the temple to pray.
Luke 18:9-14
This is the Word of the Lord.
Hymn
"Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life"
or
"Dear Lord and Father of Mankind"
A Message for Ash Wednesday
Receiving the sign of the cross with ashes (Voluntary for those who desire)
Minister:
Ashes are a sign of repentance, humility, and frailty. They remind us of our total dependence on God. Before you approach to receive the sign of the cross with ashes, reflect on the meaning of this action:
Do you accept responsibility for your personal sins? (You may answer "I do.")
Do you accept responsibility for that evil in the world which your apathy and indifference have allowed? (You may answer "Yes.")
Do you desire to return to the Lord with your whole heart, and to seek his forgiveness and strength? (You may answer "I do.")
Do you believe that, to be a follower of Jesus, you must deny yourself and take up your cross daily? (You may answer "I believe.")
Do you believe it is foolish to work for great achievements or success if you destroy your soul in the process? (You may answer "Yes.")
Do you believe in the mercy of God, which is constant and more vast than all the evil in the world? (You may answer "Yes, I do believe.")
Take now, then, these ashes, and return to the Lord with your whole heart.
(PERSONS MAY COME FORWARD, AND EITHER KNEELING OR STANDING, RECEIVE THE SIGN OF THE CROSS WITH ASHES ON THEIR FOREHEAD. THE MINISTER MAY SAY THESE WORDS TO EACH PERSON: "REMEMBER THAT YOU ARE
DUST, AND TO DUST YOU SHALL RETURN.")
Reader 1:
From bonfire and arsonist's blaze,
From the coal stove and the crematorium -
Ashes.
Blighted with mortality
We carry ourselves to the ash pile of our death,
Yet need reminding:
There is no lasting city here,
To dust we shall return.
Reader 2:
A gray smudge on our foreheads
Like our smudged, imperfect lives,
Streaked with selfishness,
Singed by the angers, jealousies, greed and
Lust that flame within,
Dying embers of good intentions compromised, forgotten.
Ashen remains of resolutions soon burnt out.
Reader 3:
As we wear the sign of the cross with ashes,
We enter our Lent,
To emerge, like the fabled Phoenix,
Fresh-fashioned on Easter.
The Lord's Prayer (All pray together)
The Benediction
May the warmth of his love,
the light of his truth,
and the peace of his promise
go with you and remain with you. Amen.
Hymn
"I Lay My Sins on Jesus"
or
"Take Up Your Cross, the Savior Said"
