Making ashes

[Spirithound]

Is there a liturgy or ritual for burning the palm branches from last Palm Sunday to make the ashes for Ash Wednesday? Could it be done during Mass? Or another public ceremony?

 

[jamanne]

I don,t know of a formal service for burning the ashes but in our parish there would n,t be any left to burn.I,ve been a member of my parish for ten years and i am appalled at the behavior of people when the palms are laid out for distribution.Last Palm Sunday I was left with a little twig as parents and other adults exhorted their kids to grab as many as they could carry.what did they intend to do with them?It was as if they were grabbing the last morsels of food in the cupboard.What family needs two handfuls of palms including their kids.Is it just greed or seeing something for nothing,?I just don,t understand it

 

[Spirithound]

lol, yeah, that would be the part of the issue that my question neglected. Even though I haven’t noticed the rudeness you have, it’s slim pickin’s by the Sunday 11am Mass!

 

[Brendan]

Is there a liturgy or ritual for burning the palm branches from last Palm Sunday to make the ashes for Ash Wednesday? Could it be done during Mass? Or another public ceremony?

Don’t even THINK of burning them indoors. Palm leaves burn with a very thick smoke.

 

[Moscati]

I’m curious about this too, now. I burned one the other day outside–I had made a cross with it, but it got mangled during a move. I had heard you they were supposed to be burned, not thrown away, but it seemed like a silly thing to bother the priest about. This one was from three years ago. I wonder if it was inappropriate to do it myself?

 

[Spirithound]

I’m curious about this too, now. I burned one the other day outside–I had made a cross with it, but it got mangled during a move. I had heard you they were supposed to be burned, not thrown away, but it seemed like a silly thing to bother the priest about. This one was from three years ago. I wonder if it was inappropriate to do it myself?

It is fine to do it yourself. Burning is one of the most acceptable ways to dispose of a sacramental.

 

[FrDavid96]

I’m curious about this too, now. I burned one the other day outside–I had made a cross with it, but it got mangled during a move. I had heard you they were supposed to be burned, not thrown away, but it seemed like a silly thing to bother the priest about. This one was from three years ago. I wonder if it was inappropriate to do it myself?

Not inappropriate at all. Please do burn them yourself. When it comes to making ashed from palms, a little goes a long way. I beg my own parishioners NOT to bring me their old palms, but many still do it anyway.

If you can’t burn them, it’s just as legitimate to bury them. You can cut or break them up and simply bury them in the ground (it need not be deep at all). Let them biodegrade back into the soil. The only caveat would be to do it in a place where people don’t walk.

 

[O_Duirnin]

I don,t know of a formal service for burning the ashes but in our parish there would n,t be any left to burn.I,ve been a member of my parish for ten years and i am appalled at the behavior of people when the palms are laid out for distribution.Last Palm Sunday I was left with a little twig as parents and other adults exhorted their kids to grab as many as they could carry.what did they intend to do with them?It was as if they were grabbing the last morsels of food in the cupboard.What family needs two handfuls of palms including their kids.Is it just greed or seeing something for nothing,?I just don,t understand it

I can remember my grandmother telling me that in her day, it was common for Catholic children to go round the doors giving out palms to their non-Catholic neighbours. I haven’t heard of that being done today though.