Ash Wednesday…It is known as that day that you have to go to church because Mom or Dad say you have to go and all you know is that you get ashes on your forehead. As teenagers, often times we don’t understand the concepts of Ash Wednesday. Whether you are religious or simply curious about this day, you’ll soon get to know what the purpose really is.

What do the ashes mean?

Ash Wednesday starts the beginning of Lent, a time period of about 40 days, which represents the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert. The ashes have a very significant meaning: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” To conclude, we are all equal and there is no one who is better or worse than another person.

Lent

When people think of Lent, they believe “I’m gonna give up chips” or “I’m gonna give up chocolate.” Yes, good for you, but the point of Lent isn’t supposed to be some kind of diet. The purpose of Lent is to make yourself a better person and to make yourself closer to God. Chips don’t necessarily have to be given up. However, something else that you could do for Lent is to practice a virtue, for example, patience. If you tend to get angry quickly, for Lent you might consider working on patience. Yes it will be tough, but that is the point: to overcome a challenge.

Fasting and Abstinence

There are two days that fasting typically occurs: Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. The way fasting works is that you hold off to eat until it is noon. When you fast, try not to show that you are fasting. Then, will fasting be the most effective.

As for abstinence, meat is avoided on Ash Wednesday and every Friday throughout Lent. An alternative to meat, would be fish and any other seafood.