Are you a Catholic? Do you participate in mas on this day? Maybe you can tell us what you do and what a member of this faith is supposed to be doing in time of repentance?
In Trinidad the concept is… dance and be merry for Monday and Tuesday and then ask for forgiveness of all your sins on Wednesday.
Putting ashes on our heads as a form of penitence is a practice inherited from Jewish tradition. In Old Testament times, fast days expressed sorrow for sins and the desire to make atonement to the Father. Ashes, for Jews and Christians alike, are a sign of repentance, sorrow, and mourning.
The ashes imposed on our foreheads on Ash Wednesday are a reminder of our unworthiness and sinfulness  sinfulness that corrupts and stains us and leads to death (we return to the dust from whence we came.) Ashes remind us of our original sin and our need of redemption  our need to be cleansed of sin and made worthy of Salvation. This is why the priest says, as he imposes ashes on our foreheads, "Remember, man, that you are dust and to dust you will return" [Genesis 3:19] or Turn away from sin and be faithful to the gospel. [Mark 1:15]
The concept of Ash Wednesday in T'dad is not dance and be merry at Carnival and then ask for forgiveness of sins the foll. day.
Its 40 days of fasting that culminates on Good Friday.
Name: Plater
Country:
Comments: During Lent which starts with Ash Wednesday we are supposed to give up something that we like as a sacrifice. Some people choose food as something to give up usually no eatting of any kind of meat except fish.