To answer these questions, we must understand what is at the core of this custom. We can and should ask ourselves, why do we do this? What does this custom mean? And pertinent to the current situation, how can we do it this year, considering the concerns with COVID-19? We listen as he recites the words “ashes to ashes, dust to dust,” (from Genesis 3) over us.

You know what it’s all about: during the service we line up in the aisle and wait for the pastor to draw the sign of the cross, in ashes, on our foreheads or hands. Specifically, as we at COS look forward to Ash Wednesday, we looked at the practice of the Imposition of Ashes. The pandemic has made us question things we previously took for granted and forced us to take a closer look at everything we do. Year after year, we see the dates marked for Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and we might even have traditions for celebrating Fat Tuesday.