Ash Wednesday: All you need to know

Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday is the beginning

The annual Mardi Gras in New Orleans concludes on the day that is referred to as Fat Tuesday. This is a day of gluttony and eating meat because the following day, Ash Wednesday, begins a time of fasting and prayer.

After the revelry of Mardi Gras and over-indulging is concluded, for many believers in Christ, things shift to spiritual matters. Ash Wednesday kicks off the season of Lent, which is always exactly 46 days before Easter Sunday. This includes 40 days of Lent, plus six, and does not include Sundays.

All of this is directly affected by the date Easter falls on each year. Easter/Resurrection Sunday is always the first Sunday after the first full moon after March 21, the Spring Equinox.

Christmas is always on December 25, and Thanksgiving comes each fourth Thursday in November, but Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, Lent, Good Friday, and Easter change every single year. Easter will never take place before March 21 but can be as late as April 25.

Ash Wednesday has a purpose

Ash Wednesday is observed in Catholicism but is recognized in other Christian denominations. Some Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterians, Lutherans, and Episcopalians participate. There are also Christians who refrain from Ash Wednesday celebrations.

The ashes used on Ash Wednesday that are placed on the forehead represent the fact that man came from and will return to dust upon death. As the sign of the cross is made on the forehead with ashes, a priest will say, "Remember you are dust, and to dust, you shall return."

When bodies are being lowered into the ground after a funeral, preachers say "Ashes to ashes and dust to dust." This is a reference to God saying the same to Adam when he and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden (in the Christian Bible. On Ash Wednesday, this scripture from Genesis is a reminder to be humble, as we all will one day return to the dust.

The first Ash Wednesday

The first Ash Wednesday ceremonies are believed to have been held sometime in the 11th Century AD. I understand that some used CE for the common era but for believers in Christ it will always be the year of our Lord. Anno Domini The Lent season is not mentioned in the Bible, but Daniel 9:3 says the following:

So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes. This links fasting to ashes, and some Biblical scholars believe this is the origin of the annual practice. In the Old Testament and even during Jesus' day, the people would place ashes on their foreheads and wear clothing made from hemp or flax.

American Lenten Practices

Ash Wednesday did not gain mainstream popularity with U.S. Christians until the 1970s. Some churches pass out palm fronds on Palm Sunday (the Sunday before Easter) like the ones used to welcome Jesus into Jerusalem in the days before his crucifixion.

Those palms are burned to make the ashes that are applied on the foreheads on the following Ash Wednesday. It is customary to fast during Lent, but most Christians do not observe a total fast.

It is customary to abstain from red meat, and some people add chocolate and caffeine. Fish is considered an acceptable food for many during this holy season.

Some pastors say the bottom line is to be praying and seeking the Lord for His will as you focus on the sacrifice of Christ on Calvary during Lent and Ash Wednesday. Otherwise, you simply changed your diet.