灰的意義

聖灰瞻禮

若望保祿二世講解聖灰禮儀的意義

教宗在2000年3月8日星期三聖灰禮儀日講解有關聖灰瞻禮和四旬期的意義。

教宗說：「聖灰禮儀這一天在頭上撒聖灰並不是要給教友製造悲觀消極、聽天由命的氣氛，而是要邀請大家不要受到物質世界的約束，因為物質世界固然有它的價值，畢竟是要消失的。只有在天主內，人才能重新完全找到自己，並發現自己存在的最後意義」。

以聖灰禮儀開啟的封齋期邀請人悔改皈依，因此教宗強調：「聖門為眾人敞 
開著，誰知道自己被罪過所壓迫，也承認自己毫無功德可言，就請進入聖門 
吧！誰覺得自己虛無得像灰塵，就請進入聖門吧！ 虛弱、缺乏信心的人請從虛弱、缺乏信心的人請從 
基督的心中汲取新的活力吧！ 」。

教宗提醒聖伯多祿廣場的各國信友：「守齋刻苦不僅僅是外表的規矩或外在 的禮節行為，更是感到需要改變生活的有力標記；守齋刻苦要求人放棄合理 
的物質享受，使內心獲得更多的自由，以便更容易聆聽天主的聖訓，也更能 
夠慷慨地幫助有需要的人」。

四旬期的精神是：
人順應天主的慈愛，在生活中，以聖言、祈禱、犧牲及善功潔淨心靈，好能更深的皈依基督。 是故，領聖灰並不是我們得救的必要條件，我們該重新審訂及研究這「象徵」的價值。原來隱藏於四旬期內的聖洗的意義——「棄舊迎新，跨越死亡到達永生的意義」才最重要，我們該把這份精神帶引出來這點對於那些擁有大量慕道者的堂區尤為重要。

Quoted from http://catholic-dlc.org.hk/s02ash.htm




The priest often chooses to say as he traces the sign of the cross with ashes on the penitent's forehead: “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel.”

What Ash Wednesday is about is some pretty rare reflection. It's the day when many Christians—not just Catholics—are encouraged to pause and examine their lives; to think about how their actions, or inactions, have affected themselves and others; to look clearly at the path they're pursuing and begin a 40-day process of figuring how they should re-draw that map.

Reflection is a good thing, as we're often so caught up in the day-to-day routines of our lives that we seldom consider whether our habitual behaviors should change. Ash Wednesday, and the 40 days of Lent that follow, give us an opportunity to pause and rethink those behaviors. In a hectic, materialistic world that's often telling us what we should want out of life, that's a wonderful thing.

Unlike receiving Communion, people can receive ashes regardless of the state of their souls. They don't have to go to confession first. Yet for many people who, for whatever reason, aren't regular Mass-goers, the sense of being marked with ashes can feel even stronger than receiving Communion. The reception of ashes is not a sacrament, but the sacramental sense of it is powerful. And for those who haven't been to Mass for a while, that sense is magnified.

Quoted from Matt Nannery's Description of Ash Wednesday