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Then
the LORD thundered, "Bring on the men appointed to punish the city! Tell
them to bring their weapons with them!" Six men soon appeared from the
upper gate that faces north, each carrying a battle club in his hand. One of
them was dressed in linen and carried a writer's case strapped to his side. They
all went into the Temple courtyard and stood beside the bronze altar. Then the
glory of the God of Israel rose up from between the cherubim, where it had
rested, and moved to the entrance of the Temple. And the LORD called to the man
dressed in linen who was carrying the writer's case. He said to him, "Walk
through the streets of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of all those
who weep and sigh because of the sins they see around them." Then I heard
the LORD say to the other men, "Follow him through the city and kill
everyone whose forehead is not marked. Show no mercy; have no pity.”
(Ezekiel 9:1-5 NLV). Today is known as Ash Wednesday in the liturgical calendar. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, the 40-day period of fasting and abstinence. It is also known as the 'Day of Ashes'. So called because on that day at church many believers will have their foreheads marked with ashes in the shape of a cross. The name 'Day of Ashes' comes from "Dies Cinerum" in the Roman Missal and is found in the earliest existing copies of the Gregorian Sacramentary. The concept originated by the Roman Catholics somewhere in the 6th century. Though the exact origin of the day is not clear, the custom of marking the head with ashes on this Day is said to have originated during the papacy of Gregory the Great (590-604). In the Old Testament ashes were found to have used for two purposes: as a sign of humility and mortality; and as a sign of sorrow and repentance for sin. The modern Christian use of ashes in the liturgy of Ash Wednesday has also been taken from this Old Testament biblical custom. Putting a 'cross' mark on the forehead
was in imitation of the spiritual mark or seal that is put on a Christian in
baptism. This is when the newly born Christian is delivered from slavery to sin
and the devil, and made a slave of righteousness and Christ (Romans 6:3-18).
This can also be held as an adoption of the way 'righteousness' is described in
the book of Revelation, where we come to know about the servants of God. The
reference to the sealing of the servants of God for their protection in
Revelation is an allusion to our reading this morning, where Ezekiel also sees a
sealing of the servants of God for their protection. |
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