On Ash Wednesday, the first day of the Easter Lent, people are beginning to prepare for the holy celebration by entering a 40-days period of penitence, self-denial and good deeds in order to renew their spirit.

Ash Wednesday got its name from the tradition of placing ashes of the foreheads of the faithful, which is a symbol of repentance.

The practice entails that a minister or a priest marks the forehead of the faithful with black ashes in the shape of a cross, while it is customary for the participants to keep the sign until after sundown, when they wash it off.

In the Roman Catholic church, tradition says that on Ash Wednesday, people are not to eat meat and that they need to repent, whereas for other Christian denominations fasting has been rendered optional.

In Los Angeles, cardinal Roger Mahony, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of the city, announced he would be celebrating Ash Wednesday Mass at noon in English and at 7 p.m. in Spanish at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.

In the Lenten message he issued, Mahony said that for this year’s Lent, he would be offering his prayers and sacrifices of each day to the unemployed, families who had lost their houses and those who had been gravely affected by the recession.

Moreover, in his message, the cardinal also hinted to the clergy abuse scandal that has cost the Archdiocese of Los Angeles $660 million in a settlement with 508 alleged victims.