Ash Wednesday, February 18, 2026, marks the beginning of Lent, a season of reflection, repentance, and renewal for millions of people around the world. The Lakewood Catholic Parishes will offer several Mass times, along with more information about Lent, to help you begin this sacred season with intention and prayer.

Ash Wednesday Mass Times for February 18, 2026

• St. Luke: 8:15AM (1212 Bunts Rd.)

• St. Clement: 5:15P (2022 Lincoln Ave.)

• St. James: 7P (17514 Detroit Ave.)

What Ash Wednesday Means

Ash Wednesday is a solemn day that invites believers to remember their mortality and seek forgiveness. The ashes, often made from burned palm branches from the previous year’s Palm Sunday, are applied to the forehead in the shape of a cross. This ritual symbolizes repentance and the call to turn away from sin.

The phrase often spoken during the imposition of ashes is:

“Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return," or "Repent and believe in the Gospel."

This reminder encourages reflection on life’s deeper meaning and the need for spiritual renewal.

Is Ash Wednesday a Holy Day of Obligation?

No, Ash Wednesday is not a Holy Day of Obligation, but it is a Holy Day of Opportunity, inviting everyone, including non-Catholics, to enter into the Lenten season with earnestness and resolve. Often Ash Wednesday is one of the most well-attended Masses throughout the entire liturgical year, as it encourages the faithful to witness to their Catholic faith, and mortality, by receiving ashes on their foreheads. Looking for more ways to witness to your faith this Lent? Check out our Lenten Challenge!

How to Prepare for Lent

Lent lasts for around 40 days and leads up to Easter. It is a time to focus on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. While there are many practices you could adopt, the best thing you can do is to ask God what you should do for Lent. You might be surprised what you hear in response! Allow plenty of silence and stillness and see what God says. While giving up chocolate or using your phone less or any number of self-improvement goals can be helpful on a personal level, the Holy Spirit is the One who knows what will make for the most fruitful Lent possible.

Interested in learning even more about Lent? Catholic.com has an excellent guide.

2026 Lent Challenge

You've prayed about it and are still stuck? Or perhaps you'd like to go a little deeper this Lent? Check out our Lent Challenge for ways to share and witness to your faith during Lent in less than 5 minutes a day!

Walk with Jesus: Stations of the Cross -- Every Friday in Lent from 4:30-5p

People from all backgrounds are invited to enter more deeply into Jesus' journey to the Cross and to "Walk with Jesus," reflecting of how His story intersects with our own each Friday in Lent from 4:30-5p in the Church

An ancient tradition, the Stations of the Cross are a reflective walk through a story of courage, suffering, compassion, and hope. They are a series of 14 short moments — known as Stations — that follow Jesus's journey through injustice, pain, help from strangers, loss, and a love so deep that it refuses to quit. People can move from station to station and lay people volunteer to read the readings for each station, (including children with a strong reading voice, about 4th grade and above). People of all ages are welcome and invited. Learn more here.

We're praying for you! God bless your Lent!