Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and marks the first day of Lent, the six weeks of penitence before Easter.
| Ash Wednesday | |
|---|---|
A cross marked in ash on a worshipper's forehead | |
| Observed by | Many Western Christians |
| Type | Christian |
| Observances | Holy Mass, Divine Service, Holy Qurbana, Service of worship Fasting and abstinence Placing of ashes on the head |
| Date | 46 days before Easter Sunday |
| 2023 date | 22 February |
| 2024 date | 14 February |
| 2025 date | 5 March |
| 2026 date | 18 February |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Related to | Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras Shrovetide/Carnival Lent Easter Eastertide |
Ash Wednesday is observed by Catholics, Lutherans, Moravians, Anglicans, and United Protestants, as well as by some churches in the Reformed, (including certain Congregationalist, Continental Reformed, and Presbyterian churches), Baptist, Methodist and Nazarene traditions.
Ash Wednesday is traditionally observed with fasting and abstinence from meat in several Christian denominations. As it is the first day of Lent, many Christians begin Ash Wednesday by marking a Lenten calendar, praying a Lenten daily devotional, and making a Lenten sacrifice that they will not partake of until the arrival of Eastertide.
Many Christians attend special Ash Wednesday church services at which churchgoers receive ash on their foreheads or the top of their heads, as the wearing of ashes was a sign of repentance in biblical times. Ash Wednesday derives its name from this practice, in which the placement of ashes is accompanied by the words, "Repent, and believe in the Gospel" or the dictum "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." The ashes are prepared by burning palm leaves from the previous year's Palm Sunday celebrations.