Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday, in Western Christianity, the first day of the penitential season of Lent, so called from the ceremony of placing ashes on the forehead as a sign of penitence. This custom, probably introduced by Pope Gregory I, has been universal since the Synod of Benevento (1091). In the Roman Catholic church, ashes obtained from burned palm branches of the previous Palm Sunday are blessed before mass on Ash Wednesday. The priest places the blessed ashes on the foreheads of the officiating priests, the clergy, and the congregation, while reciting over each one the following formula: “Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.”

Ash Wednesday occurs six-and-a-half weeks before Easter. Thus, its date varies each year according to the date of Easter. The earliest possible date of Ash Wednesday is February 4 and the latest possible date is March 10. In Eastern (Orthodox) Christianity, Ash Wednesday is not observed; Lent begins on Clean Monday, the Monday of the seventh week before Orthodox Easter.