塗灰禮儀

#2026-0222

    From Ash Wednesday

to The First Sunday in Lent

Ash Wednesday (also known as 灰日 or 大齋首日 in Taiwan) fell on February 18 this year (2026), which happened to be the second day of the Lunar New Year (農曆馬年正月初二).

According to local custom, married women return to their mothers’ homes to visit their parents on this day. However, the six of us — the Liang family — followed the Christian tradition and celebrated Ash Wednesday at St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church in Kaohsiung.

During the service, the Rev. Antony presided. I served as a LEM, my grandson James as an acolyte, and Jean read one of the Bible lessons. We all felt deeply blessed to have the opportunity to serve together on such a special occasion.

After the Rev. Antony imposed ashes on the foreheads of all who attended the service, he handed the remaining ashes to me and asked me to do the same.

“Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return,” I said, just as he had said earlier, in Mandarin, in a soft but audible voice.

(Oh, Lord, may You bless all who were present in the church that day, and also guide and protect those who were traveling or engaged in other activities.)

The next morning, Jean, James, and I returned from Kaohsiung to Hualien. That Sunday, the three of us joined the service at St. Luke’s Church for the First Sunday in Lent.

Like many other Episcopal churches in Taiwan, St. Luke’s did not hold an Ash Wednesday service on February 18 because it fell during the Lunar New Year. Instead, the Imposition of Ashes was conducted this morning by the Rev. Minglong Wu as part of the service for the First Sunday in Lent.

The Rev. Wu delivered a meaningful sermon. I had translated most of it into English last night because Ms. Catherine had told me that she and her nephew Lawrence and his wife, Anja — who are not familiar with Mandarin — would be joining us for the service. They arrived on time, together with Ms. Jingjuan Zheng, our good friend from Taichung. (See photos below.)

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相關文章 (See also)：

1)  Ash Wednesday 塗灰禮 (截圖存檔)     (2024)

2)  A Day of Many Meanings!     (2025)

3)  敬祖主日 (Ancestor Remembrance Sunday)     (2026)

4)  The 3-in-1 Philosophy of Life     (2010)

除夕留影～馬年蒙恩！

#2026-0216B

Our heartfelt thanks to Antony and Anita for sharing these beautiful photographs, which captured — and will forever remind us of — the most memorable moments on the final evening of the Year of the Snake.

Tomorrow morning, we will welcome the Lunar New Year and begin the Year of the Horse. May the Lord continue to bless us, as He always has, so that we, together with our relatives and dear friends, may enjoy many more prosperous and joyful years — in 2026 and beyond.

Note: This will be the first time the six of us — the Liang family — celebrate the Lunar New Year in Kaohsiung City. Praise the Lord!

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相關文章 (See also)：

1)  除夕逛大街，順道......     (2026)

2)  除夕發紅包     (2021)

3)  Happy Chinese New Year!     (2023)

4)  The Year of the Hare Comes to Its End     (2024)

5)  圍爐、發紅包     (2025)

除夕逛大街，順道......

#2026-0216A

We didn’t get the food we wanted at E Sky Mall that day (see Photo 4). Today, during our New Year’s Eve walk, we finally made my grandson’s wish come true.

那天到「義享天地」沒吃到想吃的美食（圖４揭示），今日特別利用「除夕逛大街」的同時，把孫兒的 "念想" 實現了。

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相關文章 (See also)：

1)  除夕留影～馬年蒙恩！     (2026)

2)  高雄 (打狗) ～以圖紀實 (Coll. B)     (2026)

3)  除夕健行：Hiking in the Mountains     (2022)

4)  除夕特別節目：Games for the Whole Family     (2022)

敬祖主日 (Ancestor Remembrance Sunday)

#2026-0215

As established by the Episcopal Diocese of Taiwan, Jing Zu Zhuri, or Ancestor Remembrance Sunday, is observed on the Sunday nearest the end of the lunar year. On this Sunday, we earnestly thank the Lord for granting us our ancestors and especially pray for them, through whom our lives were made possible according to God’s will.

Today, two days before the Lunar New Year—the Year of the Horse (馬年)—begins, the three of us (who came from Hualien on Friday) joined the congregation at St. Timothy's Episcopal Church in Kaohsiung for the service of Ancestor Remembrance Sunday. Jean and I had a truly wonderful time worshiping God and remembering our ancestors together with our children and grandchildren this morning. We were also delighted to meet new friends, including Ms. Lìlíng Liú (the musician today!) and her husband, Mr. Xìnyī Lín (a professor at Chang Jung Christian University), Ms. Xiùzhì Ōu (the senior warden at St. Timothy's) and her husband, Mr. Wényì Chéng (nicknamed Brother Little Tiger), Ms. Jiāyí Cài (who lit the small candles for us!) and her brother, Mr. Jiāhēng Cài, and others.

To our surprise, Ms. Catherine Lee, a missionary from the UK, came to St. Timothy’s this morning with her nephew Lawrence and his wife, Anja, for a visit. Jean and I had a long and pleasant conversation with the three of them, recalling that Lawrence’s parents, David and Anna, had visited St. James' Church in Taichung in June last year (2025), and that Catherine had served as their tour guide at that time.

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🕀  牧師講道（摘要）

［大綱一］從「祭祖」到「敬祖」：釐清信仰立場

• 華人文化重孝道，但祭祖常混雜迷信與恐懼，許多基督徒掙扎：不拿香是否不孝？
• 1992年三一神學中心舉辦祭祖研討會，制定「敬祖禮」⸺用「敬」而非「祭」。
• 原則：分清「向上帝禱告」與「向祖先祭拜」。

［大綱二］登山變像：祖先在基督裡的新定位

• 耶穌顯出榮光，摩西（律法）與以利亞（先知）顯現，彼得想為三人搭棚。
• 天父宣告：「這是我的愛子......你們要聽他！」摩西、以利亞偉大，但不是救主。
• 祖先值得尊敬，但不是敬拜對象，唯有基督是我們當聽從的。

［大綱三］下山實踐：真正的孝道在生活中

• 耶穌變相後帶門徒下山，信仰不是停留在神聖時刻，而是回到日常生活。
• 敬祖的實踐：在家中尊重父母，過年時主動幫忙，耐心傾聽長輩。
• 用平安與喜樂做見證。

［總結］

• 願那在山上顯現榮光的主，照亮我們的家庭，除去恐懼與迷信，使我們在新的一年裡，既敬祖先，更敬上帝；既承傳文化，更定睛基督。

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🕀  特禱：

全能永生的上帝，祢是生命的根源，一切受造的本體：我們竭誠地感謝祢，因為祢眷愛我們的列祖列宗，使生命延續緜緜；藉著聖靈的引導，叫我們認識祢是道路、真理、生命。我們的祖先在世的時候，敬畏上帝，自強不息。懇求祢使我們能承先啟後、繼往開來，愛主愛人，歸榮耀與祢。這都是靠著我們的主耶穌基督，聖子和聖父、聖靈，一同永生，一同掌權，惟一上帝，永無窮盡。阿們。

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相關文章 (See also)：

1)  The Day of Pentecost, 2025     (2025)

2)  聖經常識知多少？     (2025)

3)  Rectory Notes: Little Shine’s Drawings     (2026)