Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent, the period of forty days before Easter in which many Christians sacrifice ordinary pleasures to reflect on Christ's sacrifices.
Community: Christian
Common practices:
- Church services on this day where a cross of ashes is marked on a parishioner's forehead symbolizing the beginning of Lent and mortality and repentance
- Most Christian's give up meat on this day for all forty days until Easter Sunday. It symbolizes a form of penance, sacrifice, spiritual growth, and a solidarity for Christ's suffering