The Origin of the Imposition of Ashes

The imposition of ashes, now a familiar Ash Wednesday tradition in Catholic, Anglican, and many Protestant churches, has its roots in an early church penitential practice. For people who had been excluded from the church for serious sin, the imposition of ashes at the start of Lent served as a public sign of their repentance.

These sinners then undertook acts of penance throughout Lent and were formally restored to the church community at Easter. By the end of tne eleventh century this practice had became less directed to particular kinds of sinners, and the imposition of ashes was…