March is no stranger to holidays, playing host to a wide array of special days, from International Women’s Day — celebrated March 8 — to St. Patrick’s Day, which turns America green on March 17. One of the most widely recognized holidays across the country, however, is Ash Wednesday, and on Drake University’s campus, there is no lack of representation.
“Ash Wednesday is really an important day on campus, especially because it’s a very visible day with people and their ashes on their forehead,” Drake junior and Bulldog Catholic member Colleen Cain said. “I think it is important for visibility, and it requires students who are Christian to go to mass at the time they wouldn’t normally go and embrace their faith.”
Ash Wednesday in the Christian religion starts the countdown through Lent until Easter Sunday. Traditionally, Lent’s 40 days of fasting, prayer and service are kicked off by Ash Wednesday, which marks the start of the new season.
Lent has changed since the seventh century from 36 days of fasting and festivities to the 40 days that have come to be. Typically, Christians who practice Lent will give up undesired habits or sins during Lent to better themselves. Some of the most popular things to be given up during Lent, according to Like the Dove, a website that promotes religion through prayer lessons and religious news articles, are sweets, alcohol, social media and meat, as some Christians already adhere to rules on meat during the days leading up to Easter.
Drake’s campus is surrounded by a variety of different options for students who are seeking community during the season of Lent, with services on virtually every corner of campus.
St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church and Student Center, situated across from Cowles Library, had 7:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. services on Ash Wednesday, while Lutheran Church of Hope+Elim, located by the Drake Diner, had a single 6:00 p.m. service.
According to Cain and Bulldog Catholic faculty advisor and adjunct professor Lindsay Gilbert, these services are important for those looking for options that fit their lifestyle and faith while still enjoying the other religious events surrounding the events leading up to Easter Sunday.
Although this may seem like a bit of work for those who don’t regularly attend church, these traditions support communities by giving structure and practices to actively help keep their faith in mind.
“A lot of events like Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday and even Lent are a good way to bring people together, and it’s a time for people to get back into their faith,” Cain said. “I have already had people ask me about reconnecting their faith, and this is a time to get closer to the faith community and God.”
Cain also touched on how Lent is whatever an individual makes of it and how one’s community can add to the experience.
“You are trying to make an individual effort and grow in your community, and it’s something so important about this time compared to others,” Cain said.
In one’s individual efforts to grow in their faith, there are typically many outside factors that add to the commitment, or lack thereof, during the sacred time. On a campus like Drake’s, where students come from so many backgrounds, keeping in mind that no one is ever alone in their journey is an aspect of the season that often highlights the importance of family, friends and showing kindness.
“For me, Lent is all about embracing the crosses that we bear because Jesus will carry and bear the final and ultimate cross, so embracing the crosses that we carry along the way and that symbol of the cross shows that each and every one of us carries our own individual crosses as well,” Gilbert said.
Gilbert also spoke on how many people with religious beliefs are all going through some of the same emotions during this time and that no one is alone in those emotions.
“There are so many of us out there, so that is what I really want to see,” Gilbert said. “I want to see the reminder to everybody who is questioning their faith that this is a time for us to take up the burdens that have been placed on us in our lives and carry them with strength and endurance knowing that in the end we will be saved.”
Drake’s campus facilitates a safe space for students to further their faith no matter their religious background. For more information on the events being held specifically for students before and after Spring Break, reach out to Colleen Cain at [email protected].
