Pope stresses "interior attitude" as Lent begins

Vatican, Feb. 25 (CWNews.com)
As he presided over Ash Wednesday services in St. Peter's Basilica, Pope John Paul II reminded participants: “External gestures of penance have value if they express an interior attitude."

The Holy Father joined with all the cardinals of the Roman Curia, the Sistine Chapel choir, and about 6,000 faithful in a solemn ceremony inaugurating the penitential season of Lent. In his homily, he remarked that the imposition of ashes is "particularly important to the Christian tradition." This external gesture, he explained, signifies "the conscience of sinful man, in the face of God's majesty and holiness."

The Pope encouraged the faithful to follow traditional Lenten practices, including "abstinence, fasting, mortification and giving up legitimate goods." He noted that these observances should be coupled with "incessant prayer" and acts of charity. Echoing the theme of his Lenten message for 2004, the Pope particularly encouraged acts of charity toward, and care for, children in need.

The Liturgy of the Word in the Vatican basilica included Scripture readings, the Pope's homily, and then the distribution of ashes. A number of bishops, priests and lay people receive the ashes from the Pope himself, in front of the Altar of Confession. The Pontiff then received his ashes from Cardinal Angelo Sodano, while dozens of priests continued the distribution throughout the basilica.

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(Emphasis mine)