Pope celebrates beginning of Lent in St Sabina on Rome’s Aventine Hill

(February 23.2012) The ashes of Ash Wednesday “welcome in this mortal state of ours the unthinkable nearness of God,” said Pope Benedict XVI in his homily at the Church of Santa Sabina on Rome’s Aventine Hill. Away from the hustle-and-bustle of the city, this southernmost hill of Rome, affords some fascinating views. A popular view is from the keyhole at the square of the Knights of Malta which looks across their gardens and perfectly frames a view of Vatican’s St. Peter's Basilica. Lent traditionally begins in Rome at this fourth century basilica of Santa Sabina, which contains the oldest depiction of the crucifixion in Christian art. The tradition goes back to the days of the early Church, revived by Pope John Paul II in 1979. Wednesday afternoon, Pope Benedict arrived in a procession from the Church of St. Anselm, also on the Aventine, to the Church of Santa Sabina. Unlike last year, when he walked the block between the two churches, this year the 84-year-old Pontiff rode in a golf cart modified to be a mini-popemobile. The ashes were at the centre of the Holy Father's homily. They are, he said, "a material sign, a natural element that, in the Liturgy, becomes a sacred symbol, on this day that marks the start of our Lenten journey. Ashes are the material sign that brings the cosmos into the Liturgy. The most important signs are those of the Sacraments: water, oil, bread and wine, which become true sacramental elements through which we communicate the Grace of Christ who comes among us. The ashes are not a sacramental sign, but they are linked with prayer for the sanctification of the Christian people. He invited reflection on the passage of Genesis which concludes with the words "Dust you are and unto dust you shall return". The pope also noted, that "the cursing of the soil had a "medicinal", or healing, function: meaning that God's intention is always good and more profound, even than His own curse. The curse does not come from God but from sin. God cannot avoid inflicting the curse because he respects human freedom and its consequences even when they are negative, the Pope said.