However, Lutherans at the time of the Reformation did not choose to retain the Imposition of Ashes. By the time of the Reformation, the Imposition was a mainstay of Lenten piety and practice. The beginning of Lent became a primary season of the church year for that to take place.īy the 12th century, ashes became associated with the beginning of Lent, thus providing the first day of Lent with its name, Ash Wednesday. Originally, ashes were reserved only for public penitents-i.e, murderers, adulterers and others who had fallen away from the church but desired reconciliation. Tertullian(ca.160-225) describes the use of sackcloth and ashes in the penance of an adulterer before his pastor. This understanding carried over into the early and medieval church. In the New Testament, Jesus declares: “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.” Thus, in the Bible, ashes carry a two-fold meaning: as a sign of human mortality and as a sign of public repentance. 3:19) is echoed in the Imposition of Ashes formula.
In fact, the Lord’s curse on Adam, “dust you are, and to dust you shall return”(Gen. The Bible contains a number of references to ashes and dust(Joshua 7:6 1 Samuel 1:2, 15:32 Job 2:12, 16:15 Jeremiah 25:34). And so, as our catechism is prone to ask: “What does this mean?” Where did this rite come from and how can it be used meaningfully in LCMS congregations today? During the last half of the 20th century, Lutherans have also begun to make use of this ancient rite, and indeed, it has been approved for use in the forthcoming Lutheran Service Book. For nearly a thousand years, these words have been spoken to young and old alike as the sign of the cross is traced on their foreheads with ashes – the Imposition of Ashes, as it has come to be known.
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