Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the six-week Lenten season is this Wednesday, February 14th. Lent is the time of preparation leading up to the celebration of Easter, April 1, 2018. Mass and the marking with ashes will be held in Lakeview at 9:00 am and in Howard City at 7:00 pm.
Imposition of ashes is a tradition that finds its roots in the Old Testament. When the ashes are placed on an individual’s forehead in the form of a cross, it is a reminder of several things:
1) A call to repentance: a physical sign that we are sinners in need of forgiveness.
2) A reminder that God created us from the earth and when we die, our bodies will return to it.
3) An assurance that God loves us so much, even when our bodies return to dust, our souls are meant to live forever with him.
(Excerpted from http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/liturgical-resources/lent/ideas-for-evangelization-during-lent.cfm)