Manila Cathedral holds three Ash Wednesday Masses

The Manila Cathedral will hold three Ash Wednesday Masses on March 5, led by Msgr. Rolando dela Cruz at 7:30 a.m., Fr. Vicente Gabriel Bautista at noon, and Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula in the evening at 6 p.m.

The cathedral will also offer sacrament of confession from 10 a.m. to noon and again from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Lenten season, during which Catholics observe prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

During these Masses, ashes are imposed on the faithful's foreheads as a symbol of repentance and mortality, with the words 'Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return'.

The observance underscores the spiritual significance of Ash Wednesday in the Catholic faith.