From foreheads to crowns: How Ash Wednesday looks different worldwide as lent begins
As Christians prepare for the start of Lent, the simple gesture of receiving ashes on Ash Wednesday takes multiple local forms. In some places worshippers leave Mass with a bold cross marked on their foreheads; in others the priest sprinkles ashes lightly on the crown of the head. Both practices mark the same season of prayer, fasting and almsgiving that intensifies in the weeks before Easter.
Different gestures, same theological meaning
The ashes used on Ash Wednesday come from last year’s Palm Sunday fronds, burned and blessed for the liturgy. They are imposed with the words, "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return, " or "Repent, and believe in the Gospel. " How those ashes meet the faithful varies by place and by custom.
Benedictine Father Eusebius Martis, who teaches liturgy in Rome and has roots in the Chicago area, emphasizes that both visible crosses on the forehead and a subtle sprinkling on the crown are approved expressions. He favors the crown sprinkling because it keeps the penitential act private — an outwardly invisible sign that aligns with Gospel calls for humility and sincerity in prayer, fasting and almsgiving. For other clergy and laity, the marked cross on the forehead carries a sacramental echo: it recalls the sign made at baptism and signals public belonging to the Christian community.
History and local rites shape practices
Regional traditions offer windows into how these rites evolved. By the 11th century there were already distinctions in how ashes were received: men commonly took ashes on the head while women received them on the forehead, a pattern some historians link to differences in head coverings in church. In Italy today, the crown-sprinkling custom is widespread, and popes have typically observed Ash Wednesday by sprinkling ashes on the head.
Not all liturgical calendars observe Ash Wednesday in the same way. In parts of northern Italy that follow the Ambrosian rite, for example, Ash Wednesday is not celebrated; Lent begins the following Sunday. These variations reflect centuries of local development in liturgy rather than changes in the season’s central spiritual aims.
Ashes in the social age: from infographics to personal stories
Modern communication has layered another dimension onto the ritual. A playful infographic that categorizes the ways ash marks appear on foreheads has circulated widely online, prompting worshippers to post and compare which pattern they received — the precise cross, a smudge, a drip or a faint dusting. Comments range from laughter to fond exasperation, underscoring how a solemn ritual also contains room for ordinary human levity.
Clergy and laypeople alike note that the core of Ash Wednesday and the forty days that follow does not change with how the mark looks. Whether the sign is private or visible, the season is meant to be a time of inward conversion and outward acts of charity. As communities observe Ash Wednesday this year, both the historical variety of customs and the contemporary conversations around them point to a single truth: Lent’s call to humility and renewal transcends regional differences in ritual practice.
For those attending services on Feb. 18, 2026 (ET), the form the ashes take may vary — but the invitation to renewal will be the same.
