It's a vibrant celebration, incorporating music, food and parades and culminating on Fat Tuesday — the final day of celebration before the solemn observance of Ash Wednesday. In the Catholic tradition,

This is Ash Wednesday, a solemn day of fasting and reflection that signals the start of Lent, the most penitential season of the church calendar for Catholics and many other Christians.

"During Lent, we are asked to devote ourselves to seeking the Lord in prayer and reading Scripture, to service by giving alms, and to practice self-control through fasting," said the United States Con...