Many people know that at the end of Maslenitsa, fasting begins, which continues until Easter. Christians of both directions (Catholics and Orthodox) adhere to it until the day of the Resurrection of Christ. However, Catholics and Orthodox fasting begins on different days and has its own name.
This day is dedicated to the work of Thomas Eliot, written in verse in 1930. To understand what exactly Eliot described under the title "Ash Wednesday", it is important to know the essence of the day itself.
Meaning of the holiday
Catholics start Lent on Wednesday. Why this happens, we will find out a little later, but first we will analyze why Ash Wednesday is so called. At the beginning of the fast, the priest in the church puts a cross on the forehead of the parishioners with consecrated ashes. It reminds people that their bodies are just dust. The priest conducts the procedure with the words: “Remember, O man, that you are dust and to dust you will return.”
The ash used is not simple, it must be from palm branches that have been preserved from the last feast of Palm Sunday (Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem). Branches are used in European countrieswillow. People often call them cats. Many parishioners believe that blessed ash contributes to a good harvest.
There are other names for this day:
- Bad Wednesday.
- Black Wednesday.
- Adam's day.
- Curve Wednesday.
- Crazy Wednesday.
These titles all refer to the same day and start a fast that should last 46 days.
History
The custom itself at first suggested sprinkling ashes on the head, but over time in some countries it changed. It has an ancient biblical origin. Even in the Old Testament, such an action meant repentance and humility of a person.
It is already known that Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent. This tradition originated in the 4th century. Moreover, at first its duration was 40 days, and by the 8th century it was decided to add a few more days. From now on, fasting began on Wednesday.
Easter doesn't have a set date that repeats year after year. It is celebrated every year at different times, so Ash Wednesday starts differently. For example, in 2015 it was held on February 18.
Why does Adam's day start 46 days before Easter
The answer lies in the fact that Ash Wednesday is the beginning of the fast, and it lasts 40 days, that is, 6 weeks. But Catholics do not keep it on Sundays, so these days fall out. That's why they start it earlier, that is, on Wednesday, and not on Monday.
For the Orthodox, fasting is continuous and is all 40consecutive days. Therefore, it takes its beginning from Monday, which is called Clean.
Interestingly, for Catholics, the last day before Lent is called Fat Tuesday. The Orthodox know it as Forgiveness Sunday.
2020 Wild Wednesday Days
The dates shown are calculated according to an algorithm developed by the Catholic denomination. In the following years, Ash Wednesday will be held by Catholics:
- 2016 - February 10;
- 2017 - March 1;
- 2018 - February 14;
- 2019 - March 6;
- 2020 - February 26.
Ash Wednesday in Slavic traditions
It is always very difficult for ordinary people to resist any prohibitions, so not everyone can fast. If today priests talk more about the spiritual side, and not about abstinence from food, then in the last century it was about strict adherence to Christian dogmas.
In European countries, it was customary these days to wear dark clothes, it was allowed to eat only a certain list of foods and alcohol was not allowed. However, the last point was harsh enough for the male half of the population, so many found an excuse for their weaknesses. In general, Ash Wednesday is the same for Catholics everywhere, although some countries have their own rites.
For example, in the Czech Republic, men after the service on Crooked Wednesday believed that a glass of alcohol drunk on that day would save them from mosquito bites and other insects in the summer. In some areas they even said:“Wash down the ashes.”
Because Ash Wednesday divided people's lives into festivities and prolonged abstinence, it was treated in a special way. So, it was believed that on this day it is impossible to spin threads. Failure to comply with the ban can lead to a poor harvest of flax and hemp, and misfortune will fall on whoever gets such clothes.
In Slovakia, you can not put eggs under the hens at this time so that they do not hatch crooked. Women also cooked long noodles to produce tall ears, and baked large pies to make the pigs grow fat.
In Poland there was a tradition according to which on this day a person could steal something from the owner of the house, and then sell it back to the owner in the tavern.
Traditions with soot
In addition to sprinkling and anointing with ashes in the church, the Slavs performed their rituals. So, in Slovakia, the guys tried to anoint young girls with soot, women also smeared themselves with it. The Poles hung a sieve with ashes over the entrance to the house so that everyone entering the house would be showered with it.
Many Catholic Slavs collected meat-waste ashes from the oven to sprinkle them with seeds, dwellings, fields. This was supposed to protect against fires, pests, natural disasters.
Ash Wednesday, the photo of the celebration of which is presented in the article, has many traditions that complement it. Most often, people thought of them on their own, so they may differ in different countries and even regions.
Reasons for Easter discrepancies between Catholics and Orthodox
It just so happens thatThe celebration of Christian Easter is not the same for Orthodox and Catholics. It happened not because of a split and not on purpose. The fact is that the celebration is calculated by studying the phases of the moon. More specifically, it should be on the 14th day of the phase after the day of the vernal equinox. Many ancient countries had their own calculation of this day, so in Gaul, Italy, Egypt, the date of Easter had its own back in the 4th century.
Another contradiction was the calendar split that occurred in the 16th century. The Gregorian calendar was introduced, and the world was divided into those who lived according to the New and Old styles. The Orthodox Church left the Julian calendar in its rites, so all holidays continue to be celebrated in the Old Style.
Most often the difference between Easter is from one to five weeks. But it can't be two or three weeks. All these calculations are carried out according to a special algorithm. At the same time, Easter for both denominations can coincide every few years. For example, this was the case in 2014. The next match will be in 2017. The main condition is that the Christian Easter does not coincide with the Jewish one.
