10-Ways-to-Rethink-Your-Ash-Wednesday-MainPhoto

Fat Tuesday is a legendary day of excess for good reason: it’s the last hurrah before a 40-day period of fasting known as Lent. It all begins the day after, on Ash Wednesday, which is recognized as a period for mourning Jesus Christ’s suffering. On this day, the sign of the cross is smudged onto believers’ foreheads in ash, symbolizing our sins.