The Collegiate United Methodist Church and Wesley Foundation will be on campus at the free speech zone 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday outside of Parks Library.

The Wesley Foundation will be there for Ash Wednesday and will be offering traditional ashes and glitter ashes to anyone wanting to show support for the LGBTQIA+ community.

The term “Ash Wednesday” comes from the annual Christian practice done worldwide among the various Christian denominations – from Catholicism to Lutheranism to Presbyterians to some Baptists.

A group called Parity started the tradition of mixing glitter into the ashes as a form of solidarity and support of LGBTQIA+ individuals in 2017.

“Purple glitter transformed a solemn act symbolizing faith, repentance and the inward reflection that takes place during Lent into a ‘fabulously conspicuous’ expression of love,” according to the Parity website.

The Parity website states that anyone can make glitter ashes with blessed ashes that have been purchased from a store or made by a local church and mixed with purple glitter.

“For a long time, whether it has been implicit or explicit, the queer community has not felt welcome to participate in the church fully, so by adding in the glitter ashes it is a visible reminder that at our church they are included,” said Rev. Jen Hibben, associate pastor and campus pastor for the Wesley Foundation.

The Collegiate United Methodist Church and Wesley Foundation will be holding its Ash Wednesday service at 9:00 p.m.

“We want to be visibly inclusive and welcoming,” Hibben said.