Fat Tuesday - or Mardi Gras - is followed by Ash Wednesday to kick off the start of Lent. Here's what to know about fish Fridays and Easter dates

Ash Wednesday is the first day of the season of Lent that leads up to Good Friday and Easter. What to know about the day.

In 2024, Ash Wednesday arrived early in the season, falling on Feb. 14, which is also Valentine's Day. This year, in 2025, Ash Wednesday is recognized nearly a month later on Wednesday, March 5. The day also marks the beginning of Lent, which lasts 40 days, and ends on another Christian observance, Holy Thursday.

Ash Wednesday falls on Wednesday, March 5 this year. In Western churches, Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a period of spiritual reflection before Easter. Lent runs through April 17, 2025. Palm Sunday, the first day of the Holy Week which commemorates Jesus Christ's entry to Jerusalem, is on Sunday, April 13, 2025.

Why is Easter 2025 so late this year? When is Easter Sunday date? What day does Lent start? What we know on Holy Week, Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and more.

Lent is a 40-day season of prayer and fasting observed by Christians. Lent will start on Ash Wednesday, March 5. It ends on Maundy Thursday, on April 17, the day before Good Friday.

The dates of the Jewish holiday of Passover are also based on a lunar calendar and change year to year. In 2025, Passover begins before sundown on Saturday, April 12, 2025, and ends after nightfall on April 20, 2025. Passover, or Pesach, commemorates the Israelites exodus from Egypt.

Ash Wednesday kicks off the Lenten season next week. Here's what days to look for, leading up up to Good Friday and Easter Sunday.