It's hard to believe that Lent is here with the first day of
Lent being so early in February this year! What is the
significance of putting ashes on one's forehead to start the
Lenten season? Below is a quote from an article on About.com A
Day of Repentance:The distribution of ashes reminds us of our
own mortality and calls us to repentance. In the early Church,
Ash Wednesday was the day on which those who had sinned, and who
wished to be readmitted to the Church, would begin their public
penance. The ashes that we receive are a reminder of our own
sinfulness, and many Catholics leave them on their foreheads all
day as a sign of humility. In this article, Ash Wednesday Our
Shifting Understanding of Lent, it states the following: When we
receive ashes on our foreheads, we remember who we are. We
remember that we are creatures of the earth ("Remember that you
are dust"). We remember that we are mortal beings ("and to dust
you will return"). We remember that we are baptized. We remember
that we are people on a j