Read so far John R. Jones Citizen Reporter February 10, 2021 - 00:00 Posted in: Father Augustine Asante imposing the ashes on parishioners at last year’s Ash Wednesday service at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Columbus. Citizen archives COVID-19 has prompted changes to the imposing of the ash celebrated by the Catholic church for Ash Wednesday. This year, Ash Wednesday is Feb. 17. A directive has been issued by the Catholic Diocese of Victoria to its priests on how Ash Wednesday is to be celebrated. According to the directive, the ashes can be distributed by sprinkling them on the crown of each person’s head instead of imposing them on the forehead. This will be done with no spoken words. This is following a directive from the Book of Blessings. Masks and social distancing in the pews will continue.