Christians around the world begin their pilgrimage toward Easter Sunday on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 9.
The day marks the beginning of the Lenten season, in which believers remember the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, culminating with Easter Sunday March 27.
Parishioners at St. Anne Catholic Church, 825 S. Ortonville Road, Ortonville, and St. Mark Catholic Church, 7296 S. Gale Road, Goodrich, will mark Ash Wednesday by having ashes placed on their foreheads as a sign of remorse for their sins.
St. Anne is offering a 9 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Mass on Ash Wednesday, as well as a noon Scripture service. Also, the church will be open all day, and ashes will be available for self-imposition.
Meanwhile, St. Mark is offering Ash Wednesday services at 6:30 p.m., noon, and 7 p.m. Ashes will be distributed during those times, and a Communion service will be held at each of the services.
According to Fr. Lawrence E. Mick, a priest in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, the first clear evidence of Ash Wednesday dates back to the year 960, according to the February 2004 edition of ‘Catholic Update.?