A Roman Catholic lay minister uses ash to mark a student's forehead with the sign of a cross during a Ash Wednesday religious ritual on school grounds in Las Pinas city, Metro Manila March 9, 2011. Ash Wednesday, which serves as a reminder that "as a man is dust, so unto dust he shall return", marks the beginning of the season of Lent. It is a season of penance, reflection and fasting which prepares believers for Jesus Christ's resurrection on Easter Sunday. REUTERS/Erik de Castro (PHILIPPINES - Tags: RELIGION SOCIETY EDUCATION)