Out Of The Ashes

By: Greg Kandra
Topics: Field Notes

(AP)

We've had a touch of spring here in New York today. After the ice and snow and sleet of the last couple weeks...suddenly, a thaw. It's bracing and beautiful. And it's a happy reminder that spring is coming. It may be a while, but it will get here eventually.

Another reminder is the Christian calendar. Today is Ash Wednesday -- for Christians around the world, the beginning of the pentitential season of Lent (the 40 days leading up to Easter). So here's a little T.S. Eliot for you, from his epic poem Ash-Wednesday:

Pray to God to have mercy upon us
And pray that I may forget
These matters that with myself I too much discuss
Too much explain
Because I do not hope to turn again
Let these words answer
For what is done, not to be done again
May the judgment not be too heavy upon us

Because these wings are no longer wings to fly
But merely vans to beat the air
The air which is now thoroughly small and dry
Smaller and dryer than the will
Teach us to care and not to care Teach us to sit still.

Pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death
Pray for us now and at the hour of our death.

The poem, we're told, is a long and elegantly crafted meditation on Eliot's conversion to the Anglican Church in the 1920s.

These days, Ash Wednesday is notable as the one day in the year when churches are absolutely packed. It's a phenomenon no one can quite explain. But for some reason, Christians of all stripes, from the passive to the pious, just have to get ashes.

Here at CBS, your humble editor continued that tradition; I set up shop in one of the offices upstairs and invited those interested to come up and get smudged. (Frankly, I felt like a barber, waiting for customers...) About a dozen people wandered in -- including the President of CBS News and CBS Sports, Sean McManus -- and all walked away with the burnt marking on their brows.

It's a gesture that is being repeated around the world this day, in chapels and schoolrooms and basilicas and thatched huts, as countless millions come forward to present themselves to be marked -- and, perhaps, transformed. After the glitter of Mardi Gras comes the grit of this Wednesday ritual. Each of us becomes a kind of burnt offering, and hears anew the words of the minister as we are stained: "Remember you are dust, and to dust you will return."

It's not something you hear every day -- or think about every day. Which may be one more reason why this particular holy day exerts such a primal pull on so many of us.

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by gregkandra February 23, 2007 5:13 PM EST: A couple thoughts.

I would invite those Catholics who are tsk-tsking about my post to hunt around elsewhere for someone else in the mainstream media who is writing about faith with any sort of seriousness. Good luck. (And, if you read my post you will see that my treatment of this day was eminently serious -- and far from irreligious.)

Those who are appalled that ashes were given out at CBS should visit their local police precinct, firehouse or hospital on Ash Wednesday. You'll see the same thing. People have been giving out ashes in the workplace for years. (Cardinal O'Connor even began the practice of sending an armada of priests into the New York subways and train stations to offer ashes to commuters -- a tradition that continues to this day.)

It's a big Church. And a big blogosphere. I'm blessed to be a part of both, and grateful to have so many readers who feel so strongly about this. Keep reading. And have a good Lent, everyone.

Greg Kandra
Editor, "Couric & Co."; Reply to this comment


by theanchores February 23, 2007 4:29 PM EST: (cont) If we don't want to come off like Pharisees, then perhaps we should take a moment and consider how we express ourselves before dumping on each other? Maybe?

I won't apologize for defending Kandra nor for losing my temper. Whimpering Catholics/tiresome scolds who get caught up in the fleeting moment or look for chances to harangue are not what we're supposed to be about. Our formation and our faith has trained us to look beyond the stupid prickles of a day, to eternity.

The church needs fewer sensitive plants who swoon or bristle at the slightest heat, and a few more mystics who know that 1/2 of what is before us is an illusion & the other 1/2 the devil's merriment. He loves when we freak out over every little thing - keeps us distracted, disengaged, angry & judgemental. Which keeps us from prayer and interior silence.

Indulging oneself in a poem instead of calling others names might better serve both God and man that's all I'm saying.; Reply to this comment


by theanchores February 23, 2007 4:19 PM EST: How impressively charitable and holy we all are! To sacrifice and "intellectual indulgence" in humility while still managing to indulge the far-from-humble impulse to refer to another Christian man as an "garden variety ***" How edifying and impressive. Jesus must be so pleased with all of it.

"See how these Christians love one another." The ones who aren't name-calling are busy whining about how mean the world treats them.

I'm a Catholic who wonders how or why the fact that there are people who mock Catholics & Catholicism gives anyone an excuse to jump ugly.

The world treats us badly? Well, that's exactly what Christ promised us. What are you complaining about? IT'S WHAT YOU SIGNED ON FOR! I don't think Christ warned us about it so we could sit around being offended or scanning each other with fine-tooth combs to see if we're perfect enough. That's God's job, anyway. (cont.); Reply to this comment


by oriskany3 February 23, 2007 12:30 PM EST: I had considered pulling Eliot's poem off the shelf for a quick scan after returning from Mass on Wednesday, and resisted the impulse, feeling a bit foolish and remonstrating myself that intellectual indulgence isn't what the day is about. Therein lies the crux of Kandra%u2019s (probably unintended) insult; like many urbanites, he has an adolescent impulse urging him that not even the most sacred of concepts can be enunciated in public if you can%u2019t make it sound %u201Ccool.%u201D I don%u2019t think he%u2019s a blasphemer, just a garden variety ***.; Reply to this comment


by epicrecipe February 22, 2007 8:15 PM EST: theanchores, I can appreciate you wanting to defend your friend, however, some of his statements are poorly chosen at best. I'll be charitable and assume that was not his intention, especially given the beautiful eloquence of his last two paragraphs.

Rather than respond with such hostility, consider that we Catholics are subjected to misrepresentation and outright mockery and disdain of our faith in the media. The mark on our foreheads are an outward sign of our humility to God and of our intent to be better people. It is a witness to our fellow community of Christians, not a source of prideful boasting. Trust me, the odd stares in public can be discomforting.

Peace.; Reply to this comment


by clusiana February 22, 2007 7:39 PM EST: Uber great Catholic. Wow! Mr. Kander's irreverent words about Ash Wednesday have brought out the best and worst in some. Myself included. No, I don't know Mr. Kander. I read his blog. It annoyed me. I lose my sense of humor when I read and perceive, right or wrong, my faith being taken lightly. There is so much of that lately. My faith is either being joked about or smeared in the most filthy of ways and no one seems to think it's wrong to do so. Mr. Kander's words were just a bit flippant to me. I take my Catholic faith seriously. I am not a pharisee. I don't put on airs, SEE, LORD, WHAT I DO! TITHE, Whatever. I sing in the Choir. Say my prayers. Love the Eucharist. So, best wishes on the permanent Diaconate.; Reply to this comment


by theanchores February 22, 2007 2:39 PM EST: Oh, for crying out loud, you uber-great Catholics are beginning to remind me of the Pharisee who stood at the front of the Temple while the Publican cowered in the back. "I thank you, God, that I am not like that irreverent publican Greg Kandra, humbly smearing ashes on the foreheads of his co-workers (for which there is precedent)! I attend mass! I pay tithes! I obey every law and precept with alacrity, gravity and a keen eye for anyone else's failing! Aren't you glad I'm your Pharisee, God? DON'T YOU JUST LOVE ME, LORD?"

I've known Greg for almost ten years. I'd put his faithfulness, his humanity, his humility, his devoutness, his OBEDIENCE and his utter love for God and Church against yours any single day of the week. And twice on Sundays. You don't even know him. If you did, you'd be ashamed.; Reply to this comment


by jiminyc1 February 22, 2007 1:46 PM EST: (CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST)
On a personal note - I've known Greg for almost five years now. I know no man that is truer to his faith and the teachings of the Catholic Church. His spirituality has had a remarkable influence on me and many of our classmates. Ordination will take place in May of this year. At the end of the ceremony each new deacon will receive his assignment from the bishop. There are 216 parishes in our diocese and less than 60 men will be ordained therefore not every parish in the diocese will receive the gift of a deacon being assigned to them. I know that the parish that receives the newly ordained Deacon Greg will be receiving a very special gift. I know I treasure his friendship and because of his influence I feel not only will I be a better deacon more importantly I have become a better Catholic. Thank you Greg!; Reply to this comment


by jiminyc1 February 22, 2007 1:43 PM EST: I am a classmate of Mr. Kandra about to be ordained to the diaconate in May. Yesterday was my first experience of distributing ashes to the faithful. The lines were long for the 3 o'clock service and I can assure you that I was nervous. I kept peeking at the little book to make sure I remembered the words I was to say as I tried to make the sign of the cross on the forehead of those receiving ashes. I remember the face of the woman who was first on line, I took a deep breathe, ground my thumb into the small dish that held the ashes and reminded the woman to turn away from sin and be faithful to the gospel. When I was finished I stopped to look at the woman's forehead - an almost perfect cross of ash was squarely on the center of her head. I was proud of myself. As time went on I started to notice that no matter how hard I tried the cross was actually more of a smudge.
I spoke to one of the priest after the service and he said that it is very difficult to work with the ashes. %u201CNo matter how hard we try we usually end up with smudges%u201D. Next year he promised to buy our ash supply from a vendor that provides very fine ash that will allow us to avoid the smudges. (TO BE CONTINUED); Reply to this comment


by clusiana February 22, 2007 12:53 PM EST: Mr. Kandra, who cares what you think or do on Ash Wednesday. You "smudge" ashes on the foreheads of your "christian" compatriots at CBS. Wonderful. I attended services at my church. Standing room only. And for the most part, all Masses on weekends are standing room only. So keep your smug, smarmy self in your little ivory "catholic" tower and administer the sacraments to whomever you wish.; Reply to this comment