The Season of Lent begins with the ashesbeing placed on our foreheads. 

Why ashes? 
On this day, the Church invites us to receive a cross of ashes on our foreheads as a sign that during the season of Lent, we will make sincere efforts to cleanse our lives of sin and to discipline ourselves through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. 

Who may receive ashes? 
Baptized individuals who have reached the age of reason.  Babies and young children who have no yet received the Sacrament of Penance should not be presented to receive ashes as ashes are intended for those who are capable of personal sin.  The keeping of Ash Wednesday is for leading the baptized members of the Church to repentance and renewal of baptismal promises at Easter.
 

FASTING & ABSTINENCE

Ash Wednesday is one of the most popular and important holy days in the liturgical calendar.  Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Season of Lent.  It is a season of penance, reflection, fasting, and prayer which prepares us for Christ's Resurrection on EASTER SUNDAY.  

Ash Wednesday comes from the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting.
The practice includes the wearing of ashes on the head. The ashes symbolize the dust from which God made us. As the priest applies the ashes to a person's forehead, he speaks the words: "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." Alternatively, the priest may speak the words, "Repent and believe in the Gospel."  Ashes also symbolize grief, in this case, grief that we have sinned and caused division from God.  The ashes are made from blessed palm branches from the previous year's Palm Sunday Mass.

It is important to remember that Ash Wednesday is a day of penitential prayer and fasting (one complete meal and two light snacks throughout the day).  It is also a day of abstinence (when meat is completely avoided) just as all the Fridays in Lent.  In general, it is inappropriate to dine out, to shop, or to go about in public after receiving the ashes.  Feasting during Lent is highly inappropriate.

Small children, the elderly, and the sick are exempt from these observances.  Catholics should receive ashes within the context of Mass if possible. In some cases, ashes may be delivered by a priest or a family member
to those who are sick or shut-in.

ASH WEDNESDAY is one of the most popular
and important holy days in the liturgical calendar.  Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Season of Lent.  It is a season of penance, reflection, fasting, and prayer which prepares us for Christ's Resurrection on EASTER SUNDAY.  
Ash Wednesday comes from the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting.
The practice includes the wearing of ashes on the head. The ashes symbolize the dust from which God made us. As the priest applies the ashes to a person's forehead, he speaks the words: "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." Alternatively, the priest may speak the words, "Repent and believe in the Gospel."  Ashes also symbolize grief, in this case, grief that we have sinned and caused division from God.  The ashes are made from blessed palm branches from the previous year's Palm Sunday Mass.

It is important to remember that Ash Wednesday is a day of penitential prayer and fasting.  It is generally inappropriate to dine out, to shop, or to go about in public after receiving the ashes. Feasting is highly inappropriate. Small children, the elderly and sick are exempt from this observance.  Catholics should receive ashes within the context of Mass if possible. In some cases, ashes may be delivered by a priest
or a family member to those who are sick or shut-in.

PALM SUNDAY

PALM SUNDAY is the final Sunday of Lent, the beginning of Holy Week, and commemorates the triumphant arrival of Christ in Jerusalem,
days before he was crucified.

Palm Sunday is known as such because the faithful will often receive palm fronds which they use to participate in the reenactment of Christ's arrival in Jerusalem.
In the Gospels, Jesus entered Jerusalem riding a young donkey, and to the lavish praise of the townspeople who threw clothes, or possibly palms or small branches, in front of him as a sign of homage.
This was a customary practice for people of great respect.

Palm branches are widely recognized symbol of peace and victory,
hence their preferred use on Palm Sunday.

The use of a donkey instead of a horse is highly symbolic, it represents the humble arrival of someone in peace, as opposed to arriving on a steed in war.

A week later, Christ would rise from the dead on the first Easter.

During Palm Sunday Mass, palms are distributed to parishioners who carry them in a ritual procession into church. The palms are blessed and many people will fashion them into small crosses or other items of personal devotion. These may be returned to the church, or kept for the year.

Because the palms are blessed, they may not be discarded as trash.
Instead, they are appropriately gathered at the church and incinerated to create the ashes that will be used in the follow year's Ash Wednesday observance.

The colors of the Mass on Palm Sunday are red and white, symbolizing the redemption in blood that Christ paid for the world.


To learn more about LENT,
go to: http://www.catholic.org/clife/lent/palmsunday.php

John 11:25-35

²⁵ Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life;^{a]" style="top: 0px; line-height: 22px; font-size: 0.62em; vertical-align: top; position: relative; box-sizing: border-box;">[a]} he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, ²⁶ and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” ²⁷ She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, he who is coming into the world.”

from the Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition Bible (RSVCE)




The Resurrection of Jesus

 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices which they had prepared. ² And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, ³ but when they went in they did not find the body.^{a]" style="top: 0px; line-height: 22px; font-size: 0.62em; vertical-align: top; position: relative; box-sizing: border-box;">[a]} ⁴ While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel; ⁵ and as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.^{b]" style="top: 0px; line-height: 22px; font-size: 0.62em; vertical-align: top; position: relative; box-sizing: border-box;">[b]}⁶ Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, ⁷ that the Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise.” ⁸ And they remembered his words, ⁹ and returning from the tomb they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest. ¹⁰ Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told this to the apostles;¹¹   but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. ¹² But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home wondering at what had happened.^{c]" style="top: 0px; line-height: 22px; font-size: 0.62em; vertical-align: top; position: relative; box-sizing: border-box;">[c]}

 from the Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition Bible (RSVCE)

Traditions during the Solemnity of the Lord's Epiphany

        Many traditions and genuine manifestations of popular piety have been developed in relation to the Solemnity of the Lord's Epiphany, which is of ancient origin and rich in spiritual content. Among such forms of popular piety are:

• The blessing of homes, on whose lintels are inscribed the Cross of salvation, together with the indication of the year and the initials of the three wise men (C+M+B), which can also be interpreted to mean Christus Mansionem Benedicat, written in blessed chalk; this custom, often accompanied by processions of children accompanied by their parents, expresses the blessing of Christ through the intercession of the three wise men and is an occasion for gathering offerings for charitable and missionary purposes.

• The solemn proclamation of Easter and the principal dominical feasts; its revival in many places would be opportune since it served to make the connection between the Epiphany and Easter, and orientate all feasts towards the greatest Christian solemnity.

• The exchange of "Epiphany gifts", which derives from the gifts offered to Jesus by the three kings (cf. Mt 2,11) and more radically from the gift made to mankind by God in the birth of Emmanuel amongst us (cf. Is 7, 14; 9, 16; Mt 1, 23). It is important, however, to ensure that the exchange of gifts on the solemnity of the Epiphany retain a Christian character, indicating that its meaning is evangelical: hence the gifts offered should be a genuine expression of popular piety and free from extravagance, luxury, and waste, all of which are extraneous to the Christian origins of this practice.

• Assistance to the work of evangelization; the strong missionary character of the Epiphany has been well understood by popular piety and many initiatives in support of the missions flourish on the 6th of January, especially the "Missionary work of the Holy Child", promoted by the Apostolic See.

— Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy
--- https://www.catholicculture.org