People experience life and absorb information in different ways. Some of us are aural learners; we retain what we hear. Some of us are visual learners; we retain what we see. Many of us are tactile learners; we understand best through touch and feel. Ash Wednesday is one celebration of the church that touches all these sensory modes. During the typical Ash Wednesday service, we hear words of confession and imposition, we see the sign of the cross upon the forehead of others, and we feel the touch of finger and ash on our foreheads.As we navigate the necessary restraints of COVID-19, the practice of the church will look a little different this year, but the sensory experiences will be safely offered. For those who wish to receive the imposition of ashes (tactile experience), we will provide three different ‘drive through’ times. On Wednesday, February 17, you and your family may drive through the Narthex Loop in front of the Sanctuary—8:00-9:00am, noon-1:00pm, or 5:00-6:00pm—and receive the imposition of ashes from one of our ministers. The ministers will be gloved, masked, and using single use cotton swabs for the imposition. If you only wish to hear the prayers, songs and meditation of Ash Wednesday, tune in that same evening to our internet broadcast of MidWeek Fellowship at 6:15pm. Finally, if you need a more visual, artistic interpretation of this holy day, watch the movie Chocolat (PG-13). The drama is set within the context of the Lenten season and prompts good thought about what it means to live a faithful life.
—Jim