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“Ash Wednesday is the day that starts the 40 days of Lent, a season of penance,” said the Rev. Bret Stockdale, S.J. “The season is marked by penance, almsgiving and prayer in preparation for Easter.”
According to Stockdale, a Fairfield University campus minister, the 40 days of Lent are meant to represent the 40 days that Jesus Christ spent wandering the desert.
Ashes are made by burning the palm fronds from community members and parishioners from the previous year’s Palm Sunday. They are used to mark the foreheads of those who celebrate the religious holiday as a physical reminder of their faith and community, he added.
And while Lent is the penance season for Christians and Roman Catholics, everyone can participate in the three tenants of Lent, according to Stockdale. The holiday helps those who follow Judaism and Islam to celebrate their seasons of penance as well. As for those who are of “little faith, or without faith,” he says the message of good and reflection is open for all.
“Everyone can open themselves up to the three tenants,” said Stockdale. “Our hope is that they open up to prayer in their own way, reflect on the things that may be harmful in their lives and be the best person they can be.”
There is another major importance to the day - one that is only intensified by Pope Francis and his work since being named the leader of the world's Roman Catholics, he said.
“What I think the Holy Father would want us to focus on is the poor,” Stockdale said.
To battle poverty throughout the world, the Egan Chapel at Fairfield University will be giving out rice bowls.
These rice bowls are similar to UNICEF trick-or-treat boxes but are meant to be filled with your spare change at the end of the day. When Lent is over, the rice bowls are collected and all proceeds go to Catholic Relief Services, which help fight famine and poverty in Africa.
As Roman Catholics and other Christians make their way to their parishes Wednesday for what Stockdale called the “most popular day of the year in church,” there is one thing he said all should remember.
“Make the most out of the Lenten season and make the most of your life,” he said. “We can all live a little more simply in the service of others.”
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