Ash Wednesday, that is also known as day of ashes, is the commencement for the holy season of Catholics. It holds a great value for the Catholic community as it announces the beginning of lent.
This holy day is observed by fasting and repent by Catholics across the globe. It is the start of the time period in which Catholics must follow the observances that include fasting from meat every friday — starting at the age of 14. This occurs throughout six weeks or approximately 40 days.
During the day, Catholics attend a mass that has the tradition of the ashes afterwards. The priest takes the ash and draws a cross on the forehead, which Catholics see as a symbol of dust. The ashes reflect two purposes, a sign of morality and humility.
The Catholics take this day very seriously as they prepare for the following weeks that are supposed to be a spiritual journey.
This year, Ash Wednesday took place on February 17th and, with the pandemic still posing a threat, churches around the world had to reconsider continuing the tradition. The Vatican announced at the beginning of the month that the tradition would not be cancelled. However, since the act of the ashes requires physical touch, it was done differently this year.
The director of the Office of Worship, Father Richard Vigoa, had set out specific details and guidelines for the churches in Miami.
Everyone attending Church had to wear masks at all times. The ashes had been blessed all at once to prevent high interaction and then distributed. This year, instead of applying the ashes to one’s forehead, they gently sprinkled the ashes with holy water to avoid direct contact. Additionally, if found necessary, the cross was applied by using a cotton swab and then disposed of immediately.
The churches had to thoroughly prepare their mass and create a system for the people to navigate their way through the isles smoothly without there being any group gatherings. There were only a certain amount of seats available pertaining to each church and families were seated together in one bench.
In light of these precautions that were taken by the churches, many concerned Catholics decided to attend the mass.
“Ash Wednesday is important to me because it is a reminder that we were made from dust and to dust we shall return. My church took extremely well safety measures and they only allowed 100 people maximum per mass,” said Gabriela Maldonado, a sophomore in the Health academy at MLEC.
“The ashes were actually sprinkled on my head in the sign of a cross, the priest never touched our foreheads or hair. I think it was a good precaution and the ashes still had the same effect,” she continued.
While the pandemic has been going on for almost a year, the churches throughout South Florida and the world have learned to adjust and provide their usual services.
There are many people who are dedicated to their religion and, while considering the risk of contracting the virus, they still attended the service on Wednesday to continue upholding their traditions.
