Ash Wednesday marks the first day of the Lenten season and it is the liturgical time, lasting 40 days before Easter when Catholics and other orthodox churches prepare to commemorate Jesus’s Resurrection through prayer, penance, and fasting.
To this end, Pope Leo XIV (the fourteenth ) in his message for 2026 Lenten season emphasized on building a “year of peace” through prayer and action while urging christians to disarm their hearts and end violence
Ash Wednesday is the beginning of lent and the Ashes, made from burned palms from the previous year’s Palm Sunday, are placed on the forehead of the faithful as a symbol of grief for sins, repentance, and the reminder that mankind is dust, and to dust they shall return.
It also symbolizes human mortality and the need for reconciliation with God, often marked by the imposition of ashes in the shape of a cross by the priest and which ushers in the Lenten season
Lent is a time of spiritual preparation, self-examination, and penance leading up to the celebration of Easter. Catholics and other orthodox churches use this time to imitate Jesus’ forty days of fasting in the wilderness.
Speaking with our correspondent, a Catholic Priest, Reverend Father Linus Chukwudike-Okwu of Saint Joseph Catholic parish, Amadim Olo emphasized that the season is very significant in the life of every Christians to grow in spiritual discipline and draw closer to God.
On the Spiritual impact of the day, a retired Archbishop of the Anglican Communion, Archbishop Emmanuel Chukwuma urged Nigerians to make peace with God to attract His Mercy and to heal the land from blood guilt.
Some christian faithful, Doctor. Cyprian Chukwu-Amechi and prophetess Francisca Maduabuchi called on all Nigerians to use this period to pray fervently for God’s forgiveness , peace, unity, love and progress to prevail in the nation especially now the country is facing of incessant killings.
