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Why are Palm Sunday palms sometimes burned to make ashes for Ash Wednesday?

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Raphael: Resurrection of Christ — Easter *Resurrection of Christ*, oil on wood panel by Raphael, 1499–1502; in the Museu de Arte de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. 52 × 44 cm.

The palms used on Palm Sunday are collected by many churches to be burned into ashes for use on Ash Wednesday the following year.12

This practice serves as a symbolic connection between the two observances. While Palm Sunday commemorates the joyful entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, the ashes applied on Ash Wednesday serve as a memento mori—a reminder of human mortality and the need for reconciliation with God. By burning the palms from the previous year’s celebration, the church repurposes the symbols of Christ’s triumphal entry into the material used to mark the beginning of the penitential season of Lent.12

During the Ash Wednesday service, these ashes are typically applied to the foreheads of the faithful in the shape of a cross, often accompanied by the words, "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return".2