Top 15 Questions About Ash Wednesday 2025
Leila Joy CastilloWhat should Catholics know about Ash Wednesday? Ever had to explain the dirt-like smudge on your forehead each year? That’s Ash Wednesday—and there’s more to it than you think. Although the tradition of Ash Wednesday is fairly well known, even outside of Catholic spheres, the symbolism of having a cross outlined on one’s forehead for a day may still seem unusual. Why does the holy liturgical season of Lent begin with this tradition, and what Ash Wednesday rules should Catholics know? Read on to find out answers to the top 15 questions about Ash Wednesday 2025!
1. What Is Ash Wednesday?
Ash Wednesday is the day of prayer and fasting that begins the Catholic liturgical season of Lent. When we attend Mass on Ash Wednesday, we receive a cross of ashes on our foreheads as a visible sign of humility, repentance, and hope of redemption in Christ’s sacrifice.
2. When Is Ash Wednesday This Year?
Ash Wednesday 2025
Ash Wednesday 2025 is on March 5th. The date of Ash Wednesday is different every year. It can take place as early as February 4th but depends on the date fixed for Easter, which will always fall between March 22nd and April 25th. Learn more about the schedule of important dates for Lent 2025 here!
3. What Happens At Mass On Ash Wednesday?
Mass on Ash Wednesday has a few unique features: the penitential rite is omitted because the distribution of the ashes takes its place, and there is also no Gloria or Alleluia due to the solemn nature of the season of Lent. Typically, any music at Ash Wednesday Mass is sung a capella, and the hymns chosen are somber and reflective, focused on repentance and God’s mercy.
After the homily, the priest prays over the ashes that will be distributed, asking the Lord’s blessing upon them and upon all those who will wear them in penitence. Then, he sprinkles the ashes with holy water. The priest traces a cross on the forehead of each individual who approaches him, speaking a refrain each time: “Repent, and believe in the Gospel” or “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
After the distribution, the priest and those who helped administer ashes return to the sanctuary to cleanse their fingers. The Creed is not prayed, but the rest of the Mass continues as usual!
4. Who Can Receive Ashes On Ash Wednesday?
Anyone who comes to Mass on Ash Wednesday and approaches during the distribution of ashes can receive the blessed ashes! Priests may even place ashes on the foreheads of young children, although this often depends on the priest’s preference, as it is not mandatory for them to administer ashes to children.
5. Can Non-Catholics Get Ashes On Ash Wednesday?
Yes! Since the blessing with ashes is not a sacrament but rather a sacramental, it is acceptable for non-Catholics to receive ashes. The Church teaches that “sacramentals do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit in the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church’s prayer, they prepare us to receive grace and dispose us to cooperate with it” (Catechism of the Catholic Church #1670). We are all called to repent and to bear in mind our mortality, and furthermore, the spiritual grace of the blessing with ashes can prepare the way for greater conversion in all hearts!
6. What Is The Significance Of The Ashes on Ash Wednesday?
The ashes distributed at the start of Lent are an outward sign of our interior repentance before the Lord. The Old Testament mentions occasions when God’s people donned ashes and sackcloth in total contrition and sorrow for their sins to beg the Lord’s forgiveness and mercy. Hence, the ashes call us to more radically convert our lives to the Lord.
Additionally, ashes signify our mortality. They are a “memento mori”––a reminder of our death. This world is not our home. All temporal things, including our earthly lives, will pass away. God created us from the humble dust of the earth, and one day our bodies will return to it, as the Lord reminded Adam and Eve after they sinned: “You are dust, and to dust you will return” (Genesis 3:19c). Although we are dust, we are beloved dust, for we not only have material bodies but also souls capable of dwelling eternally in loving union with God in heaven.
The particular cruciform shape of the ashes on our foreheads also has great significance. It reminds us of the price Christ paid to meet us in our brokenness and claim us as his. The austerity of the ashes combined with the sign of the cross, therefore, has a twofold significance: humility and hope in our redemption. As Father Mike Schmitz shares, “The ashes mean that I’m a sinner, but the cross means that I have a savior.”
7. Why Do Christians Celebrate Ash Wednesday?
Christians celebrate Ash Wednesday as a day deeply connected to our repentance and redemption. Ash Wednesday gives us the chance to reflect on our spiritual lives as we enter the solemn 40 days of Lent. This liturgical season is all about experiencing God’s mercy, and we can live it more fruitfully if we simplify our lives and embrace greater sacrifice and self-denial to make more space in our hearts for him.
8. What Is The Connection Between Ash Wednesday And Lent?
Lent is about experiencing God’s unending mercy, and Ash Wednesday ushers us into a deeper awareness of God’s mercy by reminding us that our hope of redemption is found in Christ’s cross. Furthermore, Ash Wednesday is the beginning of the 40 days of Lent, the same amount of time that Christ spent in the desert before his public ministry, where he prayed, fasted, and was tested by the devil.
With its somber austerity, Ash Wednesday summons us to strip our lives of selfishness and distraction, for we must enter the desert with Christ. The fasting, abstinence, and silence of Ash Wednesday remind us that we, too, are called into greater simplicity and silence so that we can draw closer to God, hear his voice, and combat temptation with his grace. By reminding us of our mortality, the ashes convey that we, too, are called to die with Christ, particularly by renouncing our egoism and all else in our lives that is not of God.
9. How Are The Ashes Made For Ash Wednesday?
Traditionally, the ashes distributed at the beginning of Lent are made from the branches blessed on Palm Sunday the year prior. The palms are burned into a powder, and in the United States, it is customary to mix them with a little holy water and chrism oil to create a paste. Some parishes offer to collect old Palm Sunday branches from parishioners to repurpose into ashes, so if you have any of last year’s palms in your home, you can inquire whether your parish would accept them before Lent begins.
10. Is Ash Wednesday Mentioned In The Bible?
The answer to this question is both “no” and “yes.” “No,” in the sense that the actual occasion of Ash Wednesday as the start of Lent is not found in the Bible. At the same time, however, the answer is “yes” because ashes were a symbol of grief and desolation or submission to God throughout the Old Testament. Scripture mentions many individuals––Job, Queen Esther, and the prophet Daniel, to name a few––who prayed and fasted with sackcloth and ashes as they interceded before God and humbled themselves before him. Wearing sackcloth and ashes is also associated with profound repentance from sin. For example, when Jonah announced that God would destroy the city of Nineveh as punishment for wickedness, the king and all the people fasted wore sackcloth and sat in ashes to beg the Lord’s forgiveness and favor.
11. What is the Origin of Ash Wednesday?
Ash Wednesday can be traced back to the early Church when administering ashes on the forehead as part of canonical penance for converted sinners. Soon, the practice of wearing ashes in the form of a cross at the beginning of Lent extended to all Christians. Ashes continue to be linked to their liturgical purpose from the Old Testament, where they represented intercession, mourning, and penance.
12. Can You Wipe Off The Ashes When You Receive Them?
In one sense, really nothing prevents you from wiping off the ashes, as there is no rule dictating that you must wear the ashes all day. If the cross of ashes has smudged unrecognizably such that it looks more like a strange smear of dirt than anything, it would be reasonable to clear your forehead. Leaving the ash cross on your forehead the rest of the day, if you can, is a powerful way to bear witness to Christ and to your life of faith. The ashes are an outward sign of our interior repentance before the Lord, and if they cause any inconvenience, this can be a small offering for God’s glory. You may certainly remove the ashes when washing your face in the evening.
13. Is Ash Wednesday a Holy Day of Obligation?
Ash Wednesday is not a holy day of obligation, because it is a day of fasting and abstinence, whereas holy days of obligation are days of feasting and joyous celebration for the Church. We might instead call it a holy day of invitation, for Ash Wednesday offers us the opportunity to come closer to the Lord and deepen our willingness to renounce ourselves for him. Even despite Ash Wednesday not being a holy day of obligation, it is among the most attended days in the Church.
14. What are the Fasting and Abstinence Rules for Ash Wednesday?
Catholics ages 14 and older are required to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday. Furthermore, Catholics between the ages of 18-59 must fast on Ash Wednesday, which means taking only one full meal and two smaller meals sufficient to maintain your strength but which do not together equal a full meal. However, if fasting or abstinence would considerably jeopardize your health––specifically, if you are pregnant, nursing, or have severe health conditions––you are exempt from these regulations and should seek to enter into a spirit of self-discipline through another penitential practice. You can find further information and answers to frequently asked questions about fasting and abstinence for Ash Wednesday and the Lenten season here.
Do Children Have to Fast on Ash Wednesday?
Fasting is only obligatory for individuals ages 18-59, so children age 17 and under do not need to fast on Ash Wednesday. However, the Church mandates abstinence from meat on Ash Wednesday for all Catholics age 14 and older.
15. Is Ash Wednesday Only a Catholic thing?
Ash Wednesday is not only a Catholic thing, but it is chiefly observed by Catholics. It is one of the most important days in the Catholic liturgical calendar because it ushers in the season of Lent in preparation for the holiest point in the year––Easter. Because the liturgical life of the Catholic Church is closely bound up in the richness of sacramental worship, Catholicism celebrates Ash Wednesday with a distinct richness that other Christian traditions may not retain.
Do other Christian denominations observe Ash Wednesday?
Some Christian denominations observe Ash Wednesday (Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Anglican churches, to name a few), while others do not.
