Have you noticed that, in 2024, the most dark and difficult annual day of self-examination and penitence falls, by some terrible misfortune, on the same exact same day as Ash Wednesday? Yes, this year Valentines Day coincides with the beginning of Lent.
A reader writes: “How do you dispose of Palms (from Palm Sunday) if you do not have a place to dig a hole to burn or bury them?” Monsignor Charles Pope answers: “You can bring them to your parish. It is common
If you're on a train platform at 5 a.m., chances are good you're waiting for your ride into the city for work. But if you're Father Peter Adamski, once a year, someone is at the train station at that early morning hour
What matters is the truth and the love that God sees, not what is superficial, showy and self-centered, Pope Francis said during a Mass to mark the beginning of Lent.
Lent is the time, he said, "to proclaim that God alone is Lord,
Prayer, charity and fasting have a medicinal power to purify oneself, help others and change history, Pope Francis wrote in a homily read by Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
Prayer, charity and fasting "are weapons of the spirit and, with them, on this day of
Our Sunday Visitor contributing editor Russell Shaw explores why many Catholics who have fallen away from the Church return on Ash Wednesday. He writes that many long to hear the truth in the words: “Remember, you are dust, and to dust you
Lent is a time to reconsider the path one is taking in life and to finally answer God's invitation to return to him with one's whole heart, Pope Francis said.
"Lent is not just about the little sacrifices we make, but about discerning
An archdiocese in the Philippines will allow churchgoers to distribute ashes among family members at home to mark the beginning of Lent Feb. 17.
Ucanews.com reported the Cebu Archdiocese in the central Philippines released a prayer guide Feb. 10 for the celebration of
Ash Wednesday, as with many other things right now, will have a different look at many Catholic parishes across the United States this year.
For starters, Catholic churches that are often standing-room only on this day -- drawing crowds just short of the
The Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments asked priests to take special anti-COVID-19 precautions this year when distributing ashes on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 17, including sprinkling ashes on the top of people's heads rather than using them to make a