Can I wipe off blessed ashes before a public event?

[johnpaul2_fan]

Is wiping off ashes (from the Ash Wednesday Mass) okay? Would it be okay to wipe off the ashes from your forehead if you were giving an important speech or presentation?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

Is wiping off ashes (from the Ash Wednesday Mass) okay?

Yes. In fact, everybody does so. Usually, many do so at the end of the day before going to sleep.

johnpaul2_fan:

Would it be okay to wipe off the ashes from your forehead if you were giving an important speech or presentation?

Yes, it’s okay; but please think of the opportunity for witness that you have by wearing the ashes and that you would be foregoing by wiping them off. On Ash Wednesday our ash-marked foreheads, signed with Christ’s cross, remind the world of Christ and his cross. Reasonable people will not think less of you if you wear the ashes during your presentation; they may indeed think better of you. If anyone asks you about the “smudge” on your forehead, you need merely say, “It’s Ash Wednesday, so I’m wearing blessed ashes.”