What is Ash Wednesday? What to know about the first day of Lent, a 40-day season of prayer
Ash Wednesday is this week, kicking off Lent, Christianity’s 40-day season of prayer, fasting and giving in preparation to honor the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter Sunday.
Ash Wednesday tends to be recognizable for the ash crosses made on worshipers’ foreheads. The cross, placed on a worshiper’s forehead by a priest, indicates that a person belongs to Jesus Christ and is grieving and morning for their sins.
This year’s Ash Wednesday occurs as Pope Francis remains hospitalized at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital after he was admitted to the hospital on Feb. 14 for a respiratory illness. On Monday, the Vatican reported that Francis had suffered two attacks of “acute respiratory insufficiency,” and doctors performed two procedures on the pope to clear his air passages.
Here’s what to know about this year’s Ash Wednesday and Lent.
Lent is a 40-day season of prayer, fasting and giving, held 40 days before Easter Sunday. The season offers Christians the time to prepare for Jesus’ Easter resurrection.
Lent has been celebrated by Christians all over the world for centuries. The 64th leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Gregory, set the first official period of Lent in 601 AD, according to the Museum of the Bible. At this time, Lent was 46 days, which allowed for 40 days of fasting − only one meal and no meat was allowed − with six Sundays counted as feast days.
Pope Gregory, according to the Museum of the Bible, was also the one to establish the tradition of marking the foreheads of worshipers with ashes in the shape of the cross on Ash Wednesday.
Lent begins on Wednesday, March 5, also known as Ash Wednesday.
Lent ends on Thursday, April 17, also called Holy Thursday.
Lent is 40 days to represent the 40 days that Jesus spent fasting and praying in the desert before starting his own public ministry.
The ashes placed in the sign of a cross on worshipers’ foreheads on Ash Wednesday are supposed to be made from last year’s Palm Sunday palm branches, according to the Catholic News Agency. Last year’s Palm Sunday was on March 24 − the Sunday before Easter.
The palm branches are burned into a fine powder and in the United States, mixed with holy water or oil to create a light paste, according to the Catholic News Agency. In other parts of the world, dry ashes are sprinkled on the forehead, rather than made into a paste.
Fasting during Lent represents the fasting Jesus did while in the desert.
“Abstinence is a form of penance. Penance expresses sorrow and contrition for our wrongdoing, indicates our intention to turn away from sin and turn back to God,” the Archdiocese of Saint Paul & Minneapolis shared on its website.
During Lent, some worshipers abstain from eating flesh meat on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and each Friday.
Worshipers abstain from meat on Fridays during Lent to honor Jesus sacrificing his flesh on Good Friday, according to the Archdiocese of Saint Paul & Minneapolis. Flesh meat includes beef, pork, chicken and turkey. Fish are not considered flesh meat.
Non-flesh products, like milk, cheese, butter and eggs, are not prohibited during Lent.
Contributing: Dwight Adams and Aaron A. Bedoya, El Paso Times, John Bacon and Marina Pitofsky, USA TODAY and Joshua McElwee, Reuters
Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Follow her on X and Instagram @gretalcross. Story idea? Email her at gcross@usatoday.com.
What is Lent?
When does Lent begin?
When does Lent end?
Why is Lent 40 days?
Where do the ashes smudged on worshipers’ foreheads come from?
Why does Lent involve fasting?
Why do worshipers abstain from eating meat on Fridays during Lent?
St. Patrick Cathedral in El Paso marks Ash Wednesday with prayer as Lent begins
Catholics gathered at St. Patrick Cathedral in Downtown El Paso to receive ashes on their foreheads from the Rev. Marcus McFadin during an early morning Ash Wednesday service.
“It’s the start of Lent, so we all come together in the church and have Mass,” said Ann Johny, an El Paso Catholic. “It’s the 40 days before our Easter. It’s time for us to reflect and get ready.”
This tradition among Borderland Catholics has its roots in the Old Testament, where ashes on the forehead was “a sign of repentance for sins, and a sign of one’s humility before God,” according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Many churches get their ashes for the services by burning palm fronds returned to their parishes that were used during the Palm Sunday service a year earlier. Palm Sunday is the Sunday before Easter.
The faithful came in their work or school uniforms at 7 a.m. Wednesday, March 5, to start their day on the first day of Lent.
“It means getting closer to God, keeps me tight with God and helps me go through my life. I have three grandkids and two kids and need all the help I can get,” said Joe Moreno, who attended the 7 a.m. service. “God gave up his son, his one and only son for us and I think it’s very important for us to realize that.”
Catholics stayed and prayed for the hour-long Mass celebration before receiving their ashes.
“Ash Wednesday means communing closely with my beliefs and my religion and my God,” El Paso Catholic William Snyder said. “Lent is important because it symbolizes the deep faith that I have with my religion.”
Catholics are expected to fast on Ash Wednesday. Fasting means consuming only one full meal a day; two smaller meals that don’t add up to a full meal are also allowed.
Children and the elderly are exempt from the fasting requirement on Ash Wednesday and during Lent.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: St. Patrick Cathedral marks 2025 Ash Wednesday with prayer, reflection
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What is Ash Wednesday 2025? When is Lent start date? Why Christians wear ashes, give things up
Ash Wednesday is tomorrow and the Lenten season is about to start.
The religious holiday is a significant part of the Christian faith despite undergoing multiple changes throughout the years, as a celebratory ritual observed for centuries.
Here is what we know about Ash Wednesday and Lent, plus what dates Easter, Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday and Good Friday fall on:
Ash Wednesday is on March 5, in 2025.
Christians commonly celebrate Ash Wednesday with ashes on their forehead and fasting to start the Lenten season, according to britannica.com.
The practice reminds Christians of human mortality and the importance of reconciling with God.
Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, which is March 5, 2025. Lent runs through April 17.
“Lent, kicking off with Ash Wednesday, is an incredible time of year that we as Christians dedicate to prayer, fasting, and giving as we prepare our hearts to celebrate the Resurrection at Easter,” Hallow CEO and co-founder Alex Jones said.
Hallow is “a prayer and meditation app that combines the peace and stillness of meditation with the spiritual growth of contemplative prayer,” according to hallow.com, and Jones said it’s popular during lent. “It’s always our biggest season at Hallow and we see it as a huge opportunity for folks to re-engage with their faith,” he said.
Lent begins on Wednesday, March 5, 2025.
According to britannica.com, the early Christian church observed Lent over a six-week period or 36 days with fasting except on Sundays. The practice was extended to 42 days in the 7th century to create 40 days of fasting that would emulate the fast of Jesus Christ while he was in the desert.
According to christianity.com, the Bible references this in Genesis 2:7: “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”
Therefore, ashes represent both death and repentance.
The purpose of ashes dates back to early Roman practices, according to britannica.com.
Serious sinners and penitents began a public penance on the first day of Lent. These people wore sackcloth, were sprinkled with ashes and remained apart until they were reconciled with the Christian community.
During the 8th to 10th centuries, this practice fell by the wayside and the penitential season of Lent started being marked with ashes placed on the heads of the entire congregation.
The ashes are gathered from burning the previous year’s palm branches used during Palm Sunday, according to britannica.com. The modern-day Roman Catholic Church is credited for applying the ashes in the shape of a cross on the forehead.
Not according to britannica.com. While Ash Wednesday is not a holy day of obligation, it is the most commonly attended service on the Christian calendar for non-Sunday services.
Yes. According to christianity.com, Catholic, Orthodox and many Protestant believers observe Ash Wednesday. But not all Protestant believers.
“The path of Lent — prayer, fasting, and generosity over a period of time—is heavily emphasized by the authors of and characters in the Bible, including Jesus. The Bible commands a lifestyle of worship and devotion that looks considerably like Lent. Therefore, while the word is absent in the Bible, the reality of Lent is woven throughout the whole of Scripture, as we have discovered.”
christianity.com
Ash Wednesday is to be observed by fasting and abstinence, according to britannica.com. No meat is allowed and only one meal should be eaten on this day.
Absolutely. Keeping the ashes on the forehead is a choice and nobody is required to wear them after the practice is complete, according to uscatholic.org.
It is believed that many Christians keep the ashes on their forehead throughout the day as a witness to their faith. The thought is that when people ask about the ashes, an opportunity presents itself to share that faith with others.
Palm Sunday is April 13, in 2025.
Maundy Thursday is April 17, in 2025.
This is the final day of Lent for Christians and focuses on the remembrance of both the foot washing and the Last Supper of Jesus Christ with the apostles.
Good Friday is April 18, in 2024.
This is when Christians commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
Easter is on Sunday, April 20, in 2025. The holiday runs late in 2025 due to the calendar system. On the Gregorian calendar, used by most Christian denominations, Easter typically falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox.
Easter is the Christian celebration of Jesus Christ’s victory over sin and death through his resurrection.
Chris Sims is a digital producer for Gannett. Follow him on Twitter: @ChrisFSims.
