NOTE: Please do not to mix ashes with water as this can cause the skin to burn. This includes suggestions for churches to send ashes to members or for households to make the ashes themselves using strips of paper and olive oil. The Michigan Annual Conference has developed a Lent in a Box set of resources for families and households to use over the 5 weeks of Lent. Offer ways for families to observe Ash Wednesday at home The United Methodist Church does not require those leading an Ash Wednesday service to be ordained or have other ministry credentials, so the service can be carried out in the home among family members entirely. Churches that will be offering some kind of in-person service should also record and make them available to members unable to attend safely. The safest way to hold an Ash Wednesday service is through a virtual or private household service. No one present has tested positive for COVID-19, experienced any common symptoms of COVID-19 or otherwise been exposed directly to the virus within the last 2 weeks.Everyone keeps a distance of at least 6 feet apart from each other unless they are part of the same permanent household.Everyone present wears a mask covering their mouth and nose at all times.For those communities who meet those criteria, outdoor services should only be offered under the following conditions: According to The Consultation, outdoor services should only be offered if the community falls below a specific threshold in terms of the rate and likelihood of infection as well as the availability of ICU hospital beds. The Ecumenical Consultation on Protocols for Worship, Fellowship, and Sacraments recommends holding virtual or outdoor Ash Wednesday services. Fortunately, churches, ministry leaders and ecumenical organizations have stepped up with creative ways to observe Ash Wednesday in 2021.

As with most services done in the shadow of the pandemic, Ash Wednesday participants will need to adapt to keep safe and avoid spreading the virus. Typically, Christians gather on this day in a service of penitence and reflection during which they impose ashes on each other’s foreheads in the shape of the Cross. Ash Wednesday (which falls on February 17 this year) is the official beginning of the season of Lent.

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