As millions of Catholics worldwide celebrate one of their faith’s holiest days of the year on Wednesday, a Sam Houston State religious community is offering students an avenue for worship.

The SHSU Catholic Student Center will host an Ash Wednesday service from noon to 1 p.m. at the Loman Student Center in Room 116. The service is open to all students and faculty.

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a 40-day period in which Catholics prepare to celebrate Easter Sunday. During the Lent Season, Catholics abstain from eating meat on Fridays and make a personal sacrifice for the 40-day period as a way to worship Jesus Christ’s crucifixion on Good Friday. Other branches of Christianity, such as the Episcopal Church, also celebrate Ash Wednesday.

Catholics attend mass on Ash Wednesday, where they receive the crucifix—made of black ashes from the palms of the previous Palm Sunday—on their forehead. The ashes are blessed by Catholic priests, meant to represent mortality and penitence. For the rest of the day, most Catholics decide to keep the ashes on their forehead, abstain from eating meat and do a partial fast—a rule that does not apply to children or the elderly.

According to the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops, there are an estimated 8.5 million Catholics living in Texas. Within this demographic are Sam Houston State University students and faculty, who may view Ash Wednesday as an important day of observance. Sam Houston State’s Catholic Student Center offers students the opportunity to participate in weekly religious services, as well as adoration, confession and rosaries.