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Many churches are forgoing the burning altogether and are simply buying their ashes from church supply companies. But even that can be a messy business. Crumm notes this advice from the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod's website: "Like sin, ashes are very dirty and go a long way."

Ash Wednesday and Lent:

• Today's ashes symbolize repentance, inner renewal | The use of ashes as a sign of penitence pre-dates Christianity (San Antonio Express-News)
  
  
• 4 of 10 Americans fast for Lent | Slightly more than a third of Protestants have fasted at least once (Scripps Howard News Service)
  
  
• Lent in war's shadow is time for mother's prayer | Ash Wednesday finds mom fearful for soldier daughter (Rocky Mountain News, Denver)
  
  
• Plea for peace on Ash Wednesday | Chance of war prompts new focus for Lent (Arizona Daily Star)
  
  
• Self-denial of Lent can bring calm liberation | For nuns, Lent is a way of life. (David Waters, The Commercial Appeal, Memphis)
  
  
• 'Lent is a time when we're supposed to slow down' (The Commercial Appeal, Memphis)
  
  
• Don't give up pretzels and hot cross buns | A look at food and abstinence during Lent across the centuries (The Beacon Journal, Akron, Oh.)
  
  
• Tone of Lent prayers becomes more personal | Turmoil adds significance to 2003 observance (Houston Chronicle)
  
  
• For many, Lent means self-denial | Fasting during Lent has long been considered a Catholic tradition, but now other Christians are choosing to follow the practice of limiting themselves to one full meal a day (The Sacramento Bee)
  
  
• Fasts for health, spirit | There are valuable health benefits, as well as spiritual ones, to be gained from fasting (The Washington Times)

Evangelicalism:

• Evangelicals: In power, on the air and next door; here like never before | When the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) holds its annual meetings this week in Eden Prairie, it will find new evangelical dominance and power in the Upper Midwest (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
  
  
• Also: What makes someone an evangelical? | Q&A on evangelicalism (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
  
  
• Evangelical Christians play a large role in every aspect of our culture | Nicholas D. Kristof not only displays the kind of ignorance such people like to attribute to evangelicals but also will reinforce in the minds of many what might be called the "evangelical bias" that causes so many Christians to distrust the mainstream media (Cal Thomas)
  
  
• Ridicule the believers | Evangelical Christians top the list of groups that can be safely targeted without apology or regret (Al Knight, Denver Post)

War with Iraq:

• Is war with Iraq just? | There is nothing in the Catholic tradition of just war that prefers multilateral to unilateral use of force, unless you subscribe to the belief that the United Nations—that struggling collection of mostly tyrannical sovereignties—is the only legitimate political authority (Maggie Gallagher)
  
  
• Pope sends peace appeal to Bush (UPI)
  
  
• Also: Pope urges world to avoid 'dramatic conflict' | Called on all Catholics to observe a day of prayer and fasting in the hope of averting war (Reuters)
  
  
• Also: Pope steps up pressure for peace (BBC)
  
  
• Also: Pope takes a stick to a war in bad faith | George Bush and his advisers are finding it difficult to ignore the opposition of the Vatican to an attack on Iraq (The Sydney Morning Herald)
  
  
• Also: White House rejects Pope's Iraq argument | "The president thinks the most immoral act of all would be if Saddam Hussein would somehow transfer his weapons to terrorists who could use them against us," says Ari Fleischer (Associated Press)
  
  

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March (Web-only) 2003, Vol. 47