Lent

[[File:Pieter Bruegel the Elder - The Fight between Carnival and Lent - WGA3373.jpg|thumb|right|165px|"The Fight between Carnival and Lent" by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, 1559]]
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'''Lent''' is a [[Christianity|Christian]] [[holy]] liturgical season in which believers [[Fasting|fast]] and [[pray]] before [[Easter]].

==Purpose==
Lent is meant to serve as a reminder of the days [[Jesus]] spent in the 
[[Recipe:Pudding|dessert]]
 desert resisting [[fun:chocolate|temptations]] from the [[Devil]]. As a celebration of their leader's sacrifices, believers go without something dear to them for the entire period of Lent. It can mean giving up something temporarily over lent or it can mean trying to overcome a [[sin]] with the hope that the believer will continue to avoid that sin after Lent.

It should be known that Sundays are not included in the forty days of Lent, as they represent the victory of the [[God|Lord]] over Satan.

==Holy days==
There are several holy days within Lent. Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent. The fourth Sunday, Laetare Sunday, marks the half way point of Lent. The fifth Sunday marks the beginning of Passiontide, and is known as Passion Sunday. Holy Week begins on the Sixth Sunday, which is known as Palm Sunday.

The Wednesday of the Holy Week is Spy<ref group=note>Not to be confused with Spa Wednesday, where it's 20 bucks off facials and massages.</ref> Wednesday, as it reminds us of the [[Judas Iscariot|Judas]] betraying [[Jesus]]. On Thursday, known as Maundy Thursday, believers celebrate the [[Last Supper]] and the agony in the garden. On Friday, known as Good Friday, believers mourn and remember the [[crucifixion]], death, and burial of Jesus. On Saturday, known as Holy Saturday, the Great Sabbath, Black Saturday,<ref group=note>Hence the heavy metal band [[Heavy metal#Black Sabbath|Black Sabbath]].</ref> or Easter Eve, Christians think of Jesus dead in the tomb.

It has been erroneously believed that in 600 CE, Pope Gregory I declared that fetal rabbits were aquatic and therefore "[[fish]]", which could be eaten during Lent; his declaration marked the beginning of rabbit domestication.<ref name=saey>[https://www.sciencenews.org/article/dna-evidence-rewriting-domestication-origin-stories DNA evidence is rewriting domestication origin stories: Fresh ideas emerge about the origins of humans’ relationships with their favorite species] by Tina Hesman Saey (12:00pm, July 6, 2017) ''Science News''.</ref> By around 920 CE, Christians began giving up red meat on fasting days for fish and fowl. This marked the beginning of breeding chickens to lay eggs all year-round.<ref name=saey/> An analysis of historical records (the declaration was never written), divergence of bone structure, and [[genetics]] indicates that there was no single point of domestication of rabbits in the past 20,000 years.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2018/02/14/legend-held-that-monks-domesticated-rabbits-for-food-the-truth-is-more-complex/ Legend held that monks domesticated rabbits for food. The truth is more complex.] by Ben Guarino (February 14, 2018) ''The Washington Post''.</ref>

==Not as efficient as some religions==
[[Jon Stewart]] once remarked that because Catholicism requires forty days of penitence, it's not as efficient as [[Judaism]] which requires only one (celebrated on [[Yom Kippur]]).

Similarly, [[Ramadan]] lasts only a month, and even then [[Muslim]]s only fast during the daytime (Muslims engage in large celebratory feasts after sundown, usually with [[goat]] meat).

==Notes==
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==References==
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[[Category:Christianity]]
[[Category:Holidays]]

Categories: Christianity, Holidays