Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting. It marks the start of the holy season of Lent, a time for reflection and repentance in preparation of the celebration of Easter. In Jesus' time people laid palms to cover His path as he arrived in Jerusalem, just days before he was crucified on the cross. On Wednesday Catholics go to Mass to get ashes placed on their forehead. The ashes represent death and repentance and they also symbolize the dust from which God made us.
