Ash Wednesday
The first day of Lent is called Ash Wednesday and this year, it is celebrated on February 22. Students, staff, parents, and Division Office staff celebrate this special day by receiving a blessing and ashes on their forehead. The ashes symbolize our mortality as well as grief; grief from the sins we have committed. We may not always be able to resist temptation as Jesus did, but Lent provides an opportunity to reflect, pray and repent for our sins. In doing so, many people make sacrifices or commit to life changes throughout the 40 days of Lent. It’s a time for spiritual fasting so that we can cleanse our souls and renew our faith as we prepare for the resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday.
The Ash Wednesday ashes are created by burning palms from the previous year’s Palm Sunday celebration. Palm Sunday is the last Sunday of Lent and leads into Holy Week. It is on this day that people laid palms to cover Jesus’s path as he arrived in Jerusalem, just days before he was crucified. Since the palms have been blessed, instead of throwing them away after the celebration, they are saved to create ashes for Ash Wednesday. Sometimes, the ashes are scented with incense and christened by holy water.