What Ash Wednesday Actually Is Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent — a season of prayer, fasting, repentance, and spiritual renewal leading up to Easter. It is observed in Western Christianity (Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Methodist ) with a ritual that many find striking: the marking of ashes on the forehead in the shape of a cross. The ashes come from burning the previous year’s Palm Sunday palms, and is accompanied by the words: “Remember that you are and to dust