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Pandemic forces Ash Wednesday changes

Those who have marked the beginning of Lent in Europe in the past will not see anything new to them when Catholic churches in the Diocese of Green Bay celebrate Ash Wednesday this week. Instead of marking the foreheads with the sign of the cross accompanied by a small prayer, ashes this year will be sprinkled on the top of the head in silence. Other countries have done this for years as the practice closely mirrors what appears in the Book of Joel. Father Dan Schuster of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Luxemburg and Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Casco says even though it will look different, the meaning behind Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent remains.

While Ash Wednesday is celebrated by a number of Christian denominations, not all of them mark the occasion with ashes. Pastor Joel McKenney of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Algoma says they will continue their practice of not marking people on Ash Wednesday, but will still distribute communion during its traditional holiday service. Algoma United Methodist Church is passing out individually wrapped packets of ashes.

 

 

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