Ash Wednesday Services
Consider sharing this prayerful day with our Christian brothers and sisters who aren’t Catholic by coming to the ecumenical service at 12pm in Memorial Church. If you’d like also or instead to celebrate Catholic Mass (not required), come to Memorial Church at 8am, 5pm, or 8pm. Ashes will be given at all of these services.

Ash Wednesday live stream (8:00pm):

What is Lent?
Lent is a 40-day season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday. It's a period of preparation to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection at Easter. During Lent, we seek the Lord in prayer by reading Sacred Scripture; we serve by giving alms (works of charity); and we practice self-control through fasting. We are called not only to abstain from luxuries during Lent, but to a true inner conversion of heart as we seek to follow Christ's will more faithfully. We recall the waters of baptism in which we were also baptized into Christ's death, died to sin and evil, and began new life in Christ.

Lenten Fasting and Abstinence
On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, Catholics abstain from meat and fast (one full meal and two small meals). On the other Fridays, we abstain from meat. Fasting is optional for those under 18 or over 59.