Free Access

For a while, as a child, my family lived over the hardware store that my father owned. My front yard was the main street of New Brighten, Pennsylvania, with an alley being my backyard. One Wednesday in March, I was exploring my domain when I began to notice people with something black on their foreheads. Had a new and strange disease broken out that caused these affectations? Since the Methodist church that my family attended did not observe Ash Wednesday, I was not familiar with the tradition of the imposition of ashes on Ash Wednesday.

The observance of Ash Wednesday goes back to at least the tenth century, marking a transition from doing formal penance by individuals during the Lenten season to a general time of penitential devotion by all. The ashes produced by the burning of the palms from the previous year's Palm Sunday were a reminder to the worshipers of their mortality, from dust we come and to dust we shall return. The service was also intended to be a call to faithfulness to the gospel.

Ash Wednesday affords a fit setting to introduce Wounded For Us. An important aspect of our mortality is our being wounded in our thoughts, our spirit and emotions, our hopes and dreams, our relationships, and our actions. When as a child I saw for the first time people with crosses on their foreheads, I wondered if there was an outbreak of a contagious illness. Ash Wednesday affirms there is. It is a condition that is a result of our being born and it has affected all of society.

The following Ash Wednesday service is the one that was used by the Crescent Avenue United Methodist Church in its observance of the five wounds of Christ. It incorporated the presentation of five votive candles that were placed in front of the five crosses on the reredos of the church's altar. Churches using Wounded For Us will want to adjust the presentation section of this service to correspond with the number of candles they will be using in their observance and how they are to be displayed.

The prayer that follows the greeting should have Ash Wednesday as its theme. United Methodists may want to use the prayer that is found on page 353 of The United Methodist Hymnal. The theme for the sermon or meditation will be dependent upon a particular church's traditions and understanding of Ash Wednesday, upon how a church chooses to incorporate Wounded For Us as a part of their Lenten observance, and upon which direction the pastor of the church decides to approach the sermons for the Sundays of Lent and Easter.

As mentioned earlier, the Crescent Avenue's Ash Wednesday service incorporates the presentation of five votive candles. The service has made provision for the presentation of a Palm Sunday candle and a Good Friday candle. As a verse of "Were You There?" is sung, a votive candle is brought forward and placed in front of one of the five candles on the altar, followed by a scripture reading. For this program, three additional verses of "Were You There?" have been written: "Were you there when they crowned him with the thorns?" "Were you there when they scourged him on the back?" and "Were you there when he rode into Jerusalem?"

After all of the candles have been presented, it is suggested that someone make a short presentation that relates the candles, our being wounded, and ashes as a symbol of our mortality. In the service, this is followed by the song "Ashes," written by Tom Conry for North American Liturgy Resource and is found in Gather (GIA Publications, Inc.) on page 173. During the singing of this song, the Lenten candles are lit. Instead of having a congregational song at this point, an anthem or special music may be used.

For the imposition of ashes, each church will want to follow their normal customs and practices. The Prayer For The Ashes and the words for the imposition of the ashes have been adapted for Wounded For Us. The prayer following the imposition should be one in keeping with the church's conventional observance of Ash Wednesday.



Worship Service

Ash Wednesday

Prelude


Greeting
1 Peter 2:24

On the cross Christ bore our sins

So that we might live for righteousness

By his wounds

We can be healed.

Opening Prayer

Lenten Hymn
"Lord, Who Throughout These Forty Days"

Old Testament Lesson
Isaiah 53:1-12

Reading From The Psalter
Psalm 51:1-17

Epistle Lesson
Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9

Gospel Hymn
"O Sacred Head, Now Wounded"

Gospel Lesson
Matthew 16:21-28

Sermon
"Wounded For Us"


Presentation Of The Five Candles
Candle One: Christ Wounded On The Head

Hymn

"Were You There?"

aa"Were you there when they crowned him with the thorns?"

Scripture

Matthew 27:27-31

Candle Two: Christ Pierced In The Side

Hymn

"Were You There?"

aa"Were you there when they pierced him in the side?"

Scripture

John 19:33, 34

Candle Three: Christ Scourged On The Back

Hymn

"Were You There?"

aa"Were you there when they scourged him on the back?"

Scripture

Matthew 27:26

Candle Four: Christ Wounded On His Hands

Hymn

"Were You There?"

aa"Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?"

Scripture

Matthew 27:35-37

Candle Five: Christ Wounded On His Feet

Hymn

"Were You There?"

aa"Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?"

Scripture

John 19:16-18

Palm Sunday Candle

Hymn

"Were You There?"

aa"Were you there when he rode into Jerusalem?"

Scripture

Matthew 21:1-11

Good Friday Candle

Hymn

"Were You There?"

aa"Were you there when they crucified my Lord?"

Scripture

Mark 15:25-39


Imposition Of Ashes
Ashes As A Symbol Of Our Being Wounded

Song
"Ashes"

(Lighting of the Lenten candles)

Thanksgiving Over The Ashes

Almighty God, you formed us out of the dust of the earth and breathed into us the breath of life.

Grant that these ashes may be to us a symbol of our mortality, of our failures, and of the places in our lives where we are wounded, so that we may remember that only by your gracious gift and the sacrifice of your Son can healing and wholeness take place.

Through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Imposition Of Ashes

Repent, and believe the good news that on the cross Christ was wounded for the places in our lives where we are wounded.

Prayer

The Peace

Closing Hymn
"Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior"

Benediction

Postlude