Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1875-02-10
ASH WEDNESDAY.
The PenIientIaI Season at Hand
How Il Opens in n Catholic
Churches.

The PeniientIRI Season at Hand
How If Opens In the Catholic
Churches.
Lent begins tO-day-much e%aylier, by the
way, than in any year since 1869. The
high festival Of Easter falls upon March
IS o within six days Of the earliest period
upon which il can ever possibly occur.
Once in a while, Easter comes as late as
April Is.
Ash Wednesday was called by the
fathers Of the Church cGpUt jgUnii, the
beginning Of the fast, or dies cinerlun, ash
day, in allusiOn to the custom Of sprink-
ling the head with ashes. The name Of
the day Is a memorial of ancient manners.
To roll oneself in the dust, to cover the
head with ashes, was, in primitive times,
a mark Of profound grief. A man who
appeared with his body, hair, and dress
covered with dust, announced by such ex-
terror his mourning and aflic6On Exam
pies Of this are frequent in Scripture,
being mentioned in Job, the
Kings, the Prophets, and also the
Gospels. David, TO express the bitterness
Of his grief, says that he ate ashes like
bread. In the first centuries Of christi
anity, when public penance was imposed,
ashes were cast upon the heads Of those
who were condemned, and they were
obliged 10 stand without the gate Of the
church, amid the lamentations Of the people
within. The ceremonies Of Ash Wednes-
day in the Roman Catholic Church are a
continuation of this primitive usage. The
old linen Of the altar and fragments
Of consecrated wood are burned
and the ashes carefully collected. Be
fore the celebration Of the mass
the priest in mourning robes reciteS
penitential psalms, AMI sOlemnly blesses
the sacred ashes. Then all the faithful ap-
proach and PROSTATE themseles, while the
priest marks a sign of the cross with the
ashes upon the forehead Of each Of them,
repeating each time the words Of the
anathema pronounced upon Adam for his
sin: "MementO, homo, quOd pulUiS IS, ct
in puIUerUn acknowledgements, man,
that thou art dust, and unto dust shalt
thou return" The people having thus lis
tened to the sentence of death, and each
bearing upon his OF her brow the pro-
phetic ashes, return to their places. The
sombre monOtOny of the ceremony,
the silence which follows il, the confusion
of all ranks and the humiliation Of all
pride which attends this common recogni-
ton of the transientness Of human life
and the ~fearfulness of destiny, render it
one Of the gravest and most impressive of
all religious rites. 1t is the overture to
forty days Of penitential mourning, and
follows Immediately the wild eAcitements
Of the carnival, the heroes of the delirous
and clamerous fOllies of one day kneeling
on the next in silence and contritiOn around
the altar Of the church; AID thus the ut
most frivol ty aud disorder of a worldly
spirit, and Christianity in all its severity
and sadness as the veritahle Law Of a fallen
humanity, stand in immediate contrast.
The use Of ashes is emitted by those
branches Of Professionalism which retain any
observance o. Ash. Wednesday. In the
Anglican Church, the maledictiOns de
nounced against impenitent sinners are
read, at the end Of each Of which the peO-
pie repeat, Amen.
The blessing of the ashes will begin at
the Cathedral this morning at half-past
seven and be followed by high mass.
There will be services at the Church OF
the Advent to-day at II A. NJ, and at u
P. NJ. At the evening service, Rt. Rev.
Bishop Quintard will preach and admins
ter the right Of confirmation.
Services will be held at Christ Church at
II A. NJ. and 7:30 p. NJ; also, tomorrow at
4P. NJ, and on Friday morning at 10. At
the close Of this mornings service the col
lection for diocesan missions will be made.