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Ash Wednesday

This article is about the day of fasting. For other uses, see Ash Wednesday (disambiguation).

Ash Wednesday
A cross marked in ash on a worshipper's forehead
Observed byMany Western Christians
TypeChristian
ObservancesHoly Mass, Divine Service, Holy Qurbana, Service of worship
Fasting and abstinence
Placing of ashes on the head
Date46 days before Easter Sunday
2023 date22 February
2024 date14 February
2025 date5 March
2026 date18 February
FrequencyAnnual
Related toShrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras
Shrovetide/Carnival
Lent
Easter
Eastertide

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.[1]

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.[2][3][4]

Ash Wednesday is traditionally observed with fasting and abstinence from meat in several Christian denominations.[5][6][7] 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.[8][9]

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.[10] 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."[11][12] The ashes are prepared by burning palm leaves from the previous year's Palm Sunday celebrations.[13]

  1. ^ Walker, Katie (7 March 2011). "Shrove Tuesday inspires unique church traditions". Daily American Reporter. Archived from the original on 14 February 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2018RCA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Lipin, Bridget (27 February 2017). "Lenten Reflections: Ash Wednesday". American Baptist Churches USA.
  4. ^ "The Significance of Lent". Methodist Church in Singapore. 22 January 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2024. Over the last 25 years, more and more Methodist local conferences have been observing Lent, the 46 days before Easter.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference ELCA1978 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Buchanan2015 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference NHMC2021 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ International Journal of Religious Education, Volume 27. National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. 1950. p. 33.
  9. ^ McDuff, Mallory (4 April 2013). "After Giving up Alcohol, I'm Addicted to Lent". Sojourners. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  10. ^ Hilovsky, Judy (15 February 2024). "The Biblical Foundations of Lent and Ash Wednesday". Museum of the Bible. Retrieved 16 February 2024. He also established the tradition of marking parishioners' foreheads with ashes in the shape of a cross. But why ashes? The symbolism of marking oneself with ashes traces its history to ancient traditions. The liturgical use of ashes can be seen in the Old Testament, where they denote mourning, mortality, and penance. In Esther 4:1, Mordecai puts on sackcloth and ashes when he hears of the decree of King Ahasuerus of Persia to kill all of the Jewish people in the Persian Empire. In Job 42:6, at the end of his confession, Job repents in sackcloth and ashes. And in the city of Nineveh, after Jonah preaches of conversion and repentance, all the people proclaim a fast and put on sackcloth, and even the king covers himself with sackcloth and sits in ashes, as told in Jonah 3:5–6.
  11. ^ Church, Catholic (14 September 2011). The Roman Missal [Third Typical Edition, Chapel Edition]. LiturgyTrainingPublications. p. 210. ISBN 9781568549903.
  12. ^ Allen, O. Wesley (29 November 2019). Protestant Worship: A Multisensory Introduction for Students and Practitioners. Abingdon Press. p. 182. ISBN 978-1-5018-4266-5.
  13. ^ Pattison, Mark (13 February 2019). "Palms to Ashes: A Few Things to Know About Ash Wednesday". The Catholic Sun. Retrieved 10 April 2022.

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