Why are the same palms used on Palm Sunday used for Ash Wednesday services the next year?
score:7
The BBC has quite a good critique on the subject. It is of course a convenient way of getting good quality ash, but there is a theological significance.
The Palm Sunday palms symbolise Christ's triumphant entry into Jerusalem, and converting them into ash is a reminder that defeat and crucifixion followed soon after.
The ashing is a mark of penitence, and using the palms is also a reminder that the same people who cried "Hosanna" were before long baying "Crucify!" just as the Palm Sunday liturgy recreates. It is a mark of our own penitence for our own concupiscence (Christ's sacrifice of himself was a propitiation once for all time, including for us in our time).
Ash on its own doesn't make much of a mark, and some kind of binding agent is needed to allow them to make their statement. The ashes may simply be mixed with water as they are blessed (which is usual in most situations), but they may also be mixed with oil as a reminder of the chrismation and signing with the cross at Baptism.
In the Palm Sunday liturgy, palms are blessed outside the church and a short gospel is read about the finding of the colt and the entry into Jerusalem. The people follow, rejoicing as on the first Palm Sunday. Once inside the church the mood of the liturgy changes abruptly, reaching its climax in the Passion Gospel. Generally this is semi-dramatised and the people have their own part to play again, shouting "Crucify! Crucify!" at that point in the narrative.
It's common in Episcopalian and other high-church circles; and universal in the Roman Catholic Church.
More post
- 📝 Why the Western European style names?
- 📝 The year 1000 anxiety?
- 📝 Why does the angel of the Lord call out from heaven to Abraham at Genesis 22?
- 📝 Should Christians call to God asking him to receive their spirit when dying?
- 📝 When was the first appearance of the term "Peccatum Gravis" in Catholic Theology?
- 📝 Does the Catholic Church teach that we need to pray for Jesus?
- 📝 How do soul sleep adherents explain Lk 23:43?
- 📝 Is there an instance of parents lying to their children that was approved by God in the Bible?
- 📝 Is it odd that there is only one sentence about the death of David?
- 📝 Martin Luther's take on Roman Catholic clergy individuals living (immediately) before him
- 📝 If an Eastern Rite Catholic marries in the Western rite, does he/she need to formally change rites?
- 📝 Was Noah and/or his family fully or partially descendant from Cain?
- 📝 According to the Young Earth Creationism, what does it mean Genesis 1:14 and 18?
- 📝 Are there published testimonies from Christians who independently discovered the doctrine of the Trinity on their own by just reading the Bible?
- 📝 According to Christians who believe that salvation can be lost, what is spiritual rebirth, what is eternal life and can salvation be regained?
- 📝 If the kingdom of God is invisible, in heaven, how can seeing Jesus be key to seeing it as he is also invisible, in heaven?
- 📝 Are there instructions in OT , specifying guidelines on maintenance of tombs?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for classifying the Eucharist as an offering or sacrifice?
- 📝 How do those who hold to the filiquoe understand 1 Timothy 6:16?
- 📝 Is there any historical evidence for the practice of "foot washing" during the first centuries of Christianity?
- 📝 Why is the Song of Solomon in bible?
- 📝 When was the term 'substitutionary atonement' first coined and what was the reason for the choice of the 2 words?
- 📝 Is Christianity an ethnic religion?
- 📝 Did Christians stop the practice of Berith (Brith, Bris?) immediately?
- 📝 How does Ravi Zacharias reconcile prayer with free will?
- 📝 Is there a good overview of Christian denominations/churches and their mapping between countries
- 📝 Is there a biblical basis for God's omnipotence or have we mistaken 'symbolism'?
- 📝 According to the Catholic Church, will people be able to have private conversations with God at any time in Heaven?
- 📝 Where does the Body, Soul and Spirit of man go after Death?
- 📝 Do Paul and the other Apostles command the keeping of Kosher diet in Acts 15:29?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Why are the same palms used on Palm Sunday used for Ash Wednesday services the next year?
- 📝 Why is the word "Ark" used for Noah's boat and the Ark of the Covenant?
- 📝 What is the basis for why certain musical beats are deemed by some to be unchristian or immoral?
- 📝 What sources are used for the Christian Bible translations?
- 📝 What does the Bible say about this question- Why do Jesus and God have two seats in heaven when they are the same God?
- 📝 What manuscripts did people use to create the NIV and KJV? Are the manuscripts used to fashion the NIV older than those used for the KJV?
- 📝 What are the main reasons of EOC for why the Protoevangelium of James was not to be included in the canon?
- 📝 Are there theological explanations for why God chose the Church to preach the gospel instead of more effective and efficient alternatives?
- 📝 Why are the other names of God not used in Christianity?
- 📝 Why is the day before Ash Wednesday sometimes called Pancake Tuesday?
- 📝 Why is the Lord's Passion read on Palm Sunday (in the Roman Catholic tradition)?
- 📝 Are there theological explanations for why God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble?
- 📝 What are the biblical reasons for why a Christian should not participate in an election process
- 📝 What was the reason why the Jews specifically used the substitute Adonay/Kyrios for the Tetragrammaton?
- 📝 Are we supposed to ASK for wisdom or SEEK it--or are they the same thing?
- 📝 Are the requirements for attaining godhood in LDS teaching the same or different for every world?
- 📝 Why are the functions for man clear in the Catholic Church leading and decisive hierarchy, but there is no corresponding function for women?
- 📝 What is the basis for saying Christians and Muslims worship the same God?
- 📝 Why are Matthew, Mark, and Luke called the synoptic gospels?
- 📝 Why are there so many translations of the Bible?
- 📝 Why was Lot "let off the hook" for offering his daughters to be raped?
- 📝 Why are there different divisions of the Ten Commandments?
- 📝 For Catholics who object to Vatican II, what are the key issues?
- 📝 Why was God so upset with Moses for striking the rock the second time in the desert?
- 📝 Are Orthodox Christians all the same faith?
- 📝 Why did God kill a man for picking up sticks on the Sabbath?
- 📝 Why are the ten commandments in Exodus 34 different?
- 📝 Are there Old Testament Scriptures that mention salvation for the Gentiles?
- 📝 Why did Jesus have to leave for the Holy Spirit to come?
- 📝 Are there theological explanations for why God allowed ambiguity to exist in Scripture?