Most Reverend Joseph A. Galante, D.D., J.C.D., Bishop of Camden, will be the principal celebrant at a Mass for Ash Wednesday:
The season of Lent, which has been observed since the fourth century, begins on Ash Wednesday, March 9, and lasts until the Mass of the Lord’s Supper (Holy Thursday), April 21. Lent has six Sundays, with the sixth Sunday of Lent [Passion (Palm) Sunday] marking the beginning of Holy Week.
Lent is the primary penitential season in the Church’s liturgical year, reflecting the forty days Jesus spent in the desert in fasting and prayer. On Ash Wednesday, ashes are blessed after the homily of the Mass and placed on the forehead as a sign of the penitential character of the season. The ashes come from the burning of palm branches used on Passion (Palm) Sunday of the previous year.
In accord with the penitential character of the season, Catholics aged 18 to 59 are obliged to fast (having only one full meal each day) on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Fasting is an act of faith, humility and complete dependence on God. On Ash Wednesday, as well as on Fridays during Lent, Catholics aged 14 and older are also obliged to abstain from eating meat. Works of charity, prayer and almsgiving are also encouraged during the Lenten season.