Note: This service is an abbreviated order so that people who are taking time from work can stay within their allotted time off. Also, the whole service is somber, including the music, so it ought not be too long.

Call To Worship
(During Lent, count the Sundays with a candelabrum holding six purple candles and one white candle. For Ash Wednesday, light these candles during the Call To Worship.)
Leader: Today is Ash Wednesday, following last evening’s “shroving” festivities. This is a transition time; we’re preparing to conclude winter activities so we can welcome spring.
People: We are marking the passage of time by remembering that eternity is behind us and before us. In Jesus of Nazareth we see the creating God, like a mother and a father, guiding us through time to eternity.
Leader: In…