Ilsa Minor | Daily Press

Rev. Rick L. Courier sprinkles ashes on the head of a parishioner during a slightly-modified Ash Wednesday service at St. Anthony the Apostle Church in Escanaba Wednesday. Despite the on-going pandemic, the faithful filled the church Wednesday, with some gathering in other rooms to avoid overfilling the sanctuary and watching the service on televisions until their turn to receive ashes. Using a method of imposing the ashes common in European churches, Courier blessed the ashes and recited the dictum “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return” to the whole congregation, before silently sprinkling the ashes on each congregant individually. The service marked the start of the Lenten season, a time of fasting and penance observed by Christians the world over as they prepare for Easter.