Ash Wednesday

What is Ash Wednesday, the religious significance of Ash Wednesday?

Ash Wednesday ushers in Lent, a 40-day time of fasting, prayer and repentance that many Christians take prior to Easter. It is the day that worshippers go to church and are sprinkled on their foreheads in the form of a cross using ashes, which are typically from the charred palms of last year’s Palm Sunday. The ashes are death (“Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return”) and need of conversion. Ash Wednesday beckons Christians to think through their spiritual lives and prepare their hearts for the resurrection of Christ at Easter.