Lent begins Feb 21
February 16, 2007
Lent begins on Ash Wednesday,
February 21.
The sacred season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, February 21.
The Catholic Church takes these forty days to prepare for Easter,
but this Lenten Season of prayer, reflection, and penance/sacrifice
welcomes all comers! Especially in the past, Lent was a time “to
give up something.' Contemporary approach encourages us to take the
time to enter more fully into understanding and living the Paschal
Mystery—the suffering, death, and Resurrection of Jesus—in our own
lives.
In the Middle Ages penitents had to wear “sack cloth and ashes' as
part of their penance during Lent. Today we ritualize our entering
into this season by Mass and “Distribution of Ashes' on the
forehead. The person distributing ashes says, “Repent and believe
in the Good News,' or the more traditional. “Remember that
you are dust and to dust you shall return.'
On Ash Wednesday, February 21, ashes will be distributed at the
Cross located outside of Lewis Hall near the entrance to the
University, between classes at the following times:
- 8:15 - 8:45 a.m.
- 9:15 - 9:45 a.m.
- 10:15 - 10:45 a.m.
- 11:15 - 11:45 a.m.
- 12:15 - 1:00 p.m.
Ashes will be distributed also in the Residence Halls from 12:15
to 1:00 p.m. in Apartment 3 Lounge.
Mass will be celebrated with the Monks in the Abbey Church at
11:45 a.m., and outdoors at the Cross with distribution of ashes at
5:00 p.m. Men and women of all faiths are most welcome to
join us for Mass or the Reception of Ashes as well as other moments
on the Lenten Journey. Try it!
