Lent is a season of preparation for Easter, the annual celebration of

the resurrection. It has come to be a time of reflection, confession and fasting.

Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent. It derives its name from

the sackcloth and ashes worn by the Old Testament prophets as a call to

solemn repentance. In many churches it is customary for the minister to

put ashes on worshipers' foreheads.

Ash Wednesday commences a 40-day holy period culminating with

Easter Sunday. This reflects Christ's 40 days in the wilderness where he

consecrated himself to God's mission which would lead him to the cross.

Leading up to Easter is "Holy Week," or "Passion Week." It

begins with Palm Sunday, which commemorates Jesus' final entry into

Jerusalem. Maundy Thursday (from the Latin word "mandatum"

"command") focuses on the Lord's Supper, wherein Christ commanded his

disciples to love one another. Lastly, there is Good Friday, the most solemn

holy day of Christianity, because it recalls the crucifixion. Black, the color

of mourning, is traditionally used, then replaced with white on Easter

Sunday a dramatical symbol of the purity Christ brings to the believer's

life through His resurrection.

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