Morning Briefing

Will you be attending Ash Wednesday services? If so, share with us a "selfie" of you and your ashes on Twitter using the hashtag #MyAshes. Then look for yours and others on our Twitter page, @NCRonline, as we retweet the photos throughout the day.

Here's a review of a book about Ash Wednesday. The author, Sara Miles, took to the streets, offering ashes to strangers.  

And Jamie Manson interviewed Sara Miles, where she talks about the significance of ashes and how God can be found everywhere.

More from Sara Miles: There's a growing movement to take the tradition out to the streets. 

Pope Francis' one-year anniversary is fast approaching. The pope is marking the occasion with a wide-ranging interview on topics such as women in the church, sex abuse and contraception.

Francis has been on the cover of several magazines and papers, but now the pontiff will have his own weekly publication.

Philippines farmers are staging an Ash Wednesday poverty protest. The rally is against the government, which has failed to redistribute hundreds of thousands of acres to the poor.

Also in the Philippines, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle is warning against hypocrisy during Lent.

Ugandan bishops are reportedly tight-lipped about the new anti-gay law passed in their country. The bishops say they are opposed to homosexuality but are reserving judgment on the bill.

However, Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana has criticized the bill, saying that gay people "are not criminals."

More religious oppression coming out of North Korea, as the country deported an Australian missionary.

Opinion: America's universities are a likely place for sexual assaults. How many more victims have to speak out before action is taken?

Another opinion: Has privacy become a luxury good? Before, we bought services like mail and the news, but now it's free and we pay with our personal data.

Hundreds of Muslims are protesting outside Malaysia's highest court as it postponed a decision on whether to hear the Catholic church's bid to be allowed to call God "Allah."

A Catholic teen is suing her parents after she left home rather than give up her boyfriend. She wants access to child support and her college tuition fund. 

Looking for a little inspiration to begin your day? NCR's sister publication, Celebration, gives you two options, both based on the Scripture readings of the day:

Pencil Preaching is blog in which Celebration editor Pat Marrin combines Scripture and sketching to reflect on the Word.

Daily Bread is a series of short reflections written by four authors who meet regularly to share the readings. Daily Bread is intended to help daily preachers and others who pray from the assigned Scriptures each day to orient themselves to the Living Word addressed to the church in the world. It's a great way to begin the day.