Catholics begins a great post

Today, Catholics enter the great post. In Catholic temples, worships will be performed with the rank of laying ash on the heads of believers. This day is called the ash.

"In the Roman Catholic Church, according to the centuries -old tradition, the great post begins with the so -called ash environment. Ashes is a symbol of the repentance and mortality of human life," the priest Igor Kovalevsky, General Secretary of the Catholic Bishops of Russia , said in an interview with RIA Novosti . According to him, the Catholics are called to "think about the values ​​of a higher order, as well as to repent in ash."

The ritual of “laying the ash on the heads of believers” can be performed in different ways: either the clergyman applies as ashes to the cross-country's forehead, or sprinkles his head directly.

“When performing the rite, the clergyman calls the believers to repent and believe in the gospel or reminds:“ You will return to dust, ”Kovalevsky noted.

The great post in the Catholic Church lasts 40 days.

“We pay special attention to the spiritual measurement of the post,” said the representative of the Catholics. According to him, these days "believers are designed to devote more time to prayer, reading scripture, mercy, they are designed to attend worship and proceed to the sacraments."

During the Great Lent, it is customary to refrain from entertaining events, bad habits and other worldly pleasures.

"As for the restrictions in food, the Latin rite does not entrust the heavy burden on the shoulders of believers," the agency’s interlocutor noted. From the age of 14, Catholics are obliged to refrain from meat dishes on Fridays, and from the moment of reaching adulthood until the 60th year of life must observe a strict post in the ashes and on a passionate Friday.

“A strict post consists in abstinence from meat and in limiting the amount of food consumed: once a day a believer can eat, and twice a little bit,” Kovalevsky explained. He emphasized that Great Lent pursues three goals. “The first is repentance. The second is the preparation of candidates for baptism, and for the baptized ones - the awareness of the importance of this moment. The third is reflection on the secret of the suffering and death of Jesus Christ in order to save the human race,” Kovalevsky said. All this, according to him, is necessary to prepare for the celebration of Easter - the Resurrection of Christ.

This year, Catholics will celebrate Easter on March 27. The Russian Orthodox Church , living according to the Julian calendar , will meet Easter on May 1. “Thus, this year the difference will be as possible - five weeks,” the representative of the Catholic Church stated. According to the conference of the Catholic bishops of Russia, there are up to 600 thousand Catholics in the country, of which up to 60 thousand live in Moscow.