Palestinian Christians Pray On Ash Wednesday, Beit Jala, West Bank

A Catholic girl prays during mass on Ash Wednesday in the Latin Patriarchate Catholic School in Beit Jala, West Bank, February 10, 2016. Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent which begins the holy season of fasting and prayer. It falls 46 days before Easter Sunday and comes from the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting. The ashes are made from the palm branches of the previous year's Palm Sunday mass and placed on the head or forehead to symbolize the dust from which God made human beings. Photo by Debbie Hill/ UPI