How Are the 40 Days of Lent Calculated? How Are the 40 Days of Lent Calculated? How Are the 40 Days of Lent Calculated? Why Sundays Aren't Counted in Lent Catholics pray during an Ash Wednesday Mass at the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle. Win McNamee/Getty Images News/Getty Images By Scott P. Richert Updated February 29, 2016. Lent , the period of prayer and fasting in preparation for Easter , is 40 days long, but there are 46 days between Ash Wednesday , the first day of Lent in the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar, and Easter. So how are the 40 days of Lent calculated? A Little History The answer takes us back to the earliest days of the Church. Christ's original disciples, who were Jewish, grew up with the idea that the Sabbath— the day of worship and of rest—was Saturday, the seventh day of the week, since the account of creation in Genesis says that God rested on the seventh day.

Christ rose from the dead, however, on Sunday, the first day of the week, and the early Christians, starting with the apostles (those original disciples), saw Christ's Resurrection as a new creation, and so they transferred the day of rest and worship from Saturday to Sunday. Sunday: The Celebration of the Resurrection Since all Sundays—and not simply Easter Sunday—were days to celebrate Christ's Resurrection, Christians were forbidden to fast and do other forms of penance on those days. Therefore, when the Church expanded the period of fasting and prayer in preparation for Easter from a few days to 40 days (to mirror Christ's fasting in the desert, before He began His public ministry), Sundays could not be included in the count. 40 Days of Fasting Thus, in order for Lent to include 40 days on which fasting could occur, it had to be expanded to six full weeks (with six days of fasting in each week) plus four extra days— Ash Wednesday and the Thursday, Friday, and Saturday that follow it. Six times six is thirty-six, plus four equals forty. And that's how we arrive at the 40 days of Lent!

Learn More For a more in-depth explanation of the history of the Lenten fast, why it has been and remains 40 days long, why Sundays have never been part of the Lenten fast, and when the Lenten fast ends, see The 40 Days of Lent: A Short History of the Lenten Fast . Stay up to date on the latest Catholicism news and learn more about the Catholic Faith. Sign up for our free Catholicism newsletter today! More FAQs About Lent The Length of Lent The Length of Lent in Liturgical Year How many days are there in Lent? Let’s count! Every year this question comes up. People hear about Lent being forty days long, but when they look at a calendar this clearly isn’t the case. Since we’ve just quoted the official definition of the start and stop of Lent, let’s look at a calendar and count up the days. Here is the whole of Lent for 2004: FEBRUARY 16 17 In this calendar, the days of Lent are counted in red.

As you can see, there are forty four of them, counting Holy Thursday as one of the days (technically, only the part of Holy Thursday before the beginning of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper is Lent; once the Mass of the Lord’s Supper begins the season becomes Triduum). Now a couple of notes: The fact that the calendar above is for 2004 does not matter. Neither does the fact that a Leap Year intervenes between Ash Wednesday and Holy Thursday. The reason is that Ash Wednesday is always a fixed number of Sundays before Holy Thursday (six Sundays, counting Palm Sunday). The particular dates of the calendar that the days of Lent fall on (Leap Year included) don’t affect the total number. If you want to be persnickety, you could argue that there are only forty three days since the definition of Lent’s start and stop points reads: "Lent runs from Ash Wednesday until the Mass of the Lord’s Supper exclusive [ General Norms for the Liturgical Year and the Calendar 28 ]. Taking the word "exclusive" to refer to both Ash Wednesday and the Mass of the Lord’s Supper would knock a day off the total. However, doing this would be an error.

Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent. Everybody knows this. And the General Norms immediately go on to list Ash Wednesday under the heading of Lent (see no. 29). The word "exclusive" applies only to the Mass of the Lord’s Supper. What we have is simply an imperfection in the drafting of the law such that it fails to properly express the legislator’s intent (which is to include Ash Wednesday in Lent). So there you have it. Lent under current law is more than forty days long. The number forty is thus to be taken as approximate, not literal. If you want to read more about how Lent and its "forty days" evolved, see here . (One last note: Some have noted that there are forty days up to and including Palm Sunday. Whether that is the reason Lent is said to have forty days is ambiguous; the article linked gives a much more complicated history. In any event, since the days after Palm Sunday are now part of Lent, the season now has more than forty days regardless of how the number originated). If you liked this post, you should join Jimmy's Secret Information Club to get more great info! Rev.

Guy Selvester March 21, 2005 at 8:42 pm You’re all wrong. Ash Wednesday, as well as the Thursday, Friday and Saturday (most of it anyway) after it are NOT part of Lent. The Penitential practices begin on Ash Wednesday but the days from Ash Wednesday to the first Sunday OF LENT are preparatory days. Before Vatican II the penitential practices and the wearing of purple began THREE WEEKS before Lent. However, Lent begins on the first Sabbath of Lent (i.e. sundown on the Saturday evening prior to the first Sunday of Lent). There are five weeks of Lent INCLUDING THE SUNDAYS which brings us to the Saturday evening prior to Palm Sunday. That’s a total of 35 days. The if you add Palm Sunday and the Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of Holy Week that makes forty days. Lent ends on the fortieth day, Holy Thursday, in the afternoon prior to the start of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper.

If you look in the breviary (liturgy of the hours) as well as the missal you’ll see that the days from Ash Wednesday to the First Sunday of Lent (called OF LENT because the Sundays DO COUNT) are not referred to as being part of Lent. THAT’S how we get forty days in Lent…NOT by excluding the Sundays. Fr. Guy Selvester Fr. Stephanos, O.S.B. March 1, 2006 at 8:36 am The Church has never enjoined us to fast on Sundays (except for the eventual discipline of fasting in preparation to receive the Eucharist). In fact, we have received injunctions FORBIDDING us to fast on Sundays. Both the “Didache” (A.D. 90) and the “Apostolic Constitutions” (A.D. 400): “he will be guilty of sin who fasts on the Lord’s Day.” Saint Augustine describes the joy of the weekly Easter: “Fasting, is set aside … on every Sunday”. (Ep.

55, 28: CSEL 342, 202) Hence, the “Quadragesima” (forty-day long season) of fasting–specifically counted as forty days of fasting, needs to exclude the Sundays from fasting. The fasting that began on Ash Wednesday is continued on Holy Thursday (as day 28 of FASTING), on Good Friday (day 39 of FASTING) and on Holy Saturday (day 40 of FASTING). The Paschal–“Passover”–Triduum begins with the Evening Mass on Holy Thursday. However the counting of “forty days” (Quadragesima) of FASTING continues. At present, the Church officially REQUIRES us to fast only on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. She nonetheless enjoins (without requiring) us to continue fasting on Holy Saturday “Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy” 110 (from the English version on the Vatican’s website): “Nevertheless, let the paschal fast be kept sacred.

Let it be celebrated everywhere on Good Friday and, where possible, prolonged throughout Holy Saturday, so that the joys of the Sunday of the resurrection may be attained with uplifted and clear mind.” The color for the liturgical hours of prayer on Holy Saturday is the Lenten violet. We do not turn to the white until the Paschal Vigil. Ash Wednesday is day 1 of the forty days of FASTING, and Holy Saturday is day 40 of the forty days of FASTING. The Sundays are excluded from FASTING. That is how we end up with forty days of FASTING between and including Ash Wednesday and Holy Saturday. Matthew Hysell November 10, 2007 at 1:26 am Your counting of the days of Lent does not account for Great and Holy Week being a distinct liturgical cycle in itself. I’m convinced that, given the Propers of Holy Week (esp. the collect on Passion Sunday) that Lent concludes on the day that Passion Week begins. By that counting, one has exactly 40 days.

mark cull February 21, 2008 at 8:24 am I was under the though that LENT was the 40 days & 40 nights Christ spent in the desert Fasting & thinking about whould take place in holy week. If you count all the days from Ash wed.to Palm Sunday You get 40 days & Nights. the rest of the week before Easter Sunday is called Hoiy Week. If Lent is 40 days, why are there 46 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter? | USCatholic.org If Lent is 40 days, why are there 46 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter? Share Article Your Faith "The 40 days of Lent" has always been more of a metaphor than a literal count. Over the course of history the season of preparation for Easter Sunday has ranged from one day (in the first century) to 44 (today in the Roman church). Officially since 1970, Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sunset on Holy Thursday.

Already at the Council of Nicea in 325 the bishops spoke of the quadragesima paschae (Latin for “40 days before Easter”) as the well-established custom. At that time Lent began on the sixth Sunday before Easter and ended at dusk on Holy Thursday—40 days. But the council also forbade fasting, kneeling, and any other acts of sorrow and penance on Sundays, even in Lent. So only 34 of the 40 days were for fasting. Since Jesus fasted and prayed for 40 days after his Baptism, Christians in the fifth century wanted literally 40 days of penance before Easter. The first step was to add Good Friday and Holy Saturday, the “paschal fast,” to make 36 fasting days. The second step occurred over the course of the next few centuries in Rome. In addition to baptizing new Christians at Easter, the practice of welcoming back on Holy Thursday those who were baptized but who had committed serious sins became popular. Just as those to be baptized entered into final and intense preparation during Lent, those to be reconciled were expected to do likewise.

But the first day of Lent—a Sunday—was already full, with Eucharist, a penitential procession through the city, and the rite of election for those to be baptized. So those to be reconciled on Holy Thursday gathered on the Wednesday before the first Sunday of Lent. Wednesday (along with Friday) was already a day of fasting throughout the year, so it was appropriate to gather the penitents on that day. Borrowing a sacred sign from the scriptures, the bishop sprinkled ashes on the heads of the penitents, which they wore (without washing) until Holy Thursday as a sign of their sorrow. This sacred sign was so attractive that even those who were not in a state of serious sin began to ask for ashes on the Wednesday before Lent. By the 11th century the pope recommended to all the bishops that ashes be distributed to anyone who sought them on that day, which became, of course, Ash Wednesday. Here then, were four more days of fasting and penance: Ash Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday before the first Sunday of Lent, bringing the total to 40.

So today, while the season of Lent (Ash Wednesday to Holy Thursday) is technically 44 days, the number of days for penance and fasting before Easter is still 40: 44 days minus 6 Sundays equals 38, plus Good Friday and Holy Saturday equals 40. When Does Lent Start In 2015? 3 Facts You Need To Know About The Christian Observance When Does Lent Start In 2015? 3 Facts You Need To Know About The Christian Observance 02/17/15 AT 10:20 AM Close The Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans (and beyond) will be at full tilt on Tuesday, but the revelry turns to austerity the following day, known as Ash Wednesday, for Christians marking the beginning of Lent. During the 40-day period of fasting, prayer and repentance in preparation for Easter, Christians strive to imitate Jesus Christ’s actions and reflect on his life, death and resurrection. This year Lent begins on Feb. 18 and ends on April 2 -- technically 46 days, but Sundays are not included in the count since they are considered a day of worship and rest.

For those unfamiliar with Lent and how it is observed, below are three answers to common questions surrounding the Lenten fast: In Western Christianity, Lent begins approximately six weeks before Easter. Photo: Flickr/ Bro. Jeffrey Pioquinto, SJ How is Lent observed? Christians started observing Lent in the fourth century, with strict self-denial and self-examination marking the period. A central practice of fasting included the exclusion of luxury foods like meat, dairy products and eggs. Today, Catholics refrain from eating meat on Fridays during Lent. Eastern Orthodox Christians follow stricter fasting rules where no meat, eggs or dairy products are allowed. Fish is permitted on the Feast of the Annunciation on March 25 and on Palm Sunday, March 29. Besides fasting, Christians may also voluntarily refrain from " bad" habits during the 40-day period – anything from eating chocolate to watching TV -- as a way to imitate Christ’s life. Other Christian denominations including Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians and Anglicans also observe Lent. Eastern Orthodox churches start their Lent observances 40 days before Palm Sunday, with fasting continuing during the Holy Week of Orthodox Easter on April 12. Why is Lent 40 days long?

Related Stories #CopticLivesMatter Helps Those Who Grieve After ISIS Killing Historically, Lent was referred to as Quadragesima – the Latin word for forty. According to catechism of the Roman Catholic Church, the Lenten fast is 40 days to represent the 40 days Jesus Christ spent fasting in the desert after he was baptized by John the Baptist. While Lent is 40 days long, there can be as many as 46 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter, depending on the year. This stems from the Christian belief that Sunday is a day of rest. When Lent was first observed, the church removed Sundays entirely from the Lenten restrictions, making it a 34-day fast. In the fifth century , Christians wanted to make the fast 40 days, which required two steps. At first they added Good Friday and Holy Saturday to make it 36 days. Within the next few centuries, Ash Wednesday was added as well as the Thursday, Friday and Saturday before the first Sunday of Lent, bringing the total fasting days to 40. What is Ash Wednesday? Ash Wednesday, this year falling on Feb. 18, marks the beginning of Lent.

While many see the observance as a Catholic one, most denominations that follow a calendar-based liturgy also observe Ash Wednesday. This includes Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian and Anglican denominations. During services, clergy use ashes burned at last year’s Palm Sunday to mark a cross on member’s foreheads as they bow, meant to signify the Biblical passage in Genesis 3:19: “For dust you are and to dust you shall return.” Catholic All Year: Sundays in Lent: We Can't ALL Be Right About This Saturday, March 8, 2014 Sundays in Lent: We Can't ALL Be Right About This It's been a while since any cans of worms were opened around here. Today seems like as good a time as any. Sundays in Lent seem to be a genuine source of confusion among Catholics. Both the "I don't cheat on Sundays" people and the "Sundays don't count" people believe that Church teaching is on their side. Or perhaps they just think there isn't a formal Church teaching on it, so it is a matter on which good Catholics are allowed to disagree. But we can't ALL be right, right?

There are 40 days of Lent, because Jesus spent 40 days in the desert in prayer and fasting before beginning his public ministry. This was three years before the events of Holy Week. Early Christians began observing 40 days of prayer and fasting immediately before the Triduum, in order to make reparation for their sins and prepare themselves for the celebration of Christ's resurrection on Easter. As the "no cheating" folks like to point out, Jesus did not come in from the desert on Sundays. But, here's the thing. When Jesus was in the desert, Sundays weren't Sundays yet. When Jesus went to the desert, he had not yet begun his ministry, he had not yet suffered his passion, he had not yet died for our sins and risen again on the third day. But once that very first Easter happened, Sundays became something set apart, something special. Each and every one is a feast. The very earliest Christians recognized that. Medieval Christians were on board with it. Pre-Vatican II types knew a Sunday when they saw one, even in Lent. That's why, when you count up the days on the calendar, the season of Lent is NOT 40 days, it's 46 days .

Because, from the very beginning of Lents, Sundays were not included as part of the Lenten fast. It's not that fasting isn't REQUIRED on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation in Lent. It's actually FORBIDDEN. Now, most of us do not fast from food except as required on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Most of us choose to fast from something else, like sweets or television, instead. But that's still a fast. And fasts don't apply on Sundays. We're not required to have sweets or watch TV on any particular Sunday, of course, so we're not required to seek them out on Sundays during Lent either. But if the opportunity arises to partake in a licit pleasurable activity on a Sunday during Lent, we shouldn't refrain because of our Lenten disciplines. Every Sunday is a little Easter. Every Sunday should feel like a celebration. If your Lenten discipline is a real, prayerful struggle, that's great. But Sunday isn't the place to struggle against licit pleasures. If, however, we have given up something that is immoral, or at least leans in that direction (like my Lenten no yelling policy), continuing to abstain from that behavior would certainly be a good idea.

And any good habits we are trying to add to our lives during Lent shouldn't be abandoned on Sundays. If you've chosen to give up something for Lent, like going to the movies, but you only ever go to the movies on Sundays, may I suggest that that's not a particularly good thing to give up for Lent? Here are some other ideas. I've written on Lent before. Many times . But the thing I most want to emphasize is that we cannot punish ourselves into being deserving of God's love and forgiveness. Lent is not a time to punish oneself. Lent is a time to perfect oneself. A perfect Christian life respects the rhythm of the Christian year and the rhythm of the week. Even within the season of Lent, there are days that are meant to be celebrated. Let's not deny those days to ourselves and to our Church. Happy Sunday everyone! Update: some information a reader shared in the comments of this post, made me panic for a bit and write a follow up post . But then, I talked to Scott P.

Richert of the About.com Catholicism page, and he wrote a nice little update to his original post on how the days of Lent are calculated , in response to my concerns about some of the excellent points raised in the comments here. I have since come full circle and now stand behind the content of this post again. Can You Break Lent on Sundays? Rules of Lenten Fasting By Scott P. Richert Updated July 22, 2016. One controversy that rears its ugly head every Lent concerns the status of Sundays as days of fasting . If you give up something for Lent, should you avoid that food or activity on Sundays? Or can you partake of it without breaking your Lenten fast? As a reader writes: Regarding what we give up for Lent, I am hearing two stories. First story: Of the 40 days of Lent, we do not observe Sundays; therefore, on this day and this day only, we do not have to observe Lent by what we have given up—i.e., if we gave up smoking, this is a day on which we can smoke.

Second story: Through the whole duration of Lent, including Sundays, up to Easter we should observe Lent thoroughly, including all that we have given up during Lent. It comes to more than 40 days if we include the Sundays, which is where I think the confusion comes into play. The reader put his finger on the point of confusion. Everybody knows that there are supposed to be 40 days in Lent , and yet, if we count the days from Ash Wednesday through Holy Saturday (inclusive), we come up with 46 days. So how do we explain the discrepancy? The Lenten Fast Versus the Liturgical Season of Lent The answer is that all of those 46 days are within the liturgical seasons of Lent and the Easter Triduum, but not all of them are part of the Lenten fast. And it's the Lenten fast that the Church refers to when it says that there are 40 days in Lent. From the earliest centuries of the Church, Christians observed Lent by imitating Christ's 40 days in the desert. As He fasted for 40 days, so did they.

(See Observing Lent Before Vatican II for more details.) Today, the Church only requires Western Catholics to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday . What Does This Have to Do With Sundays? From the very earliest days, the Church has declared that Sunday, the day of Christ's Resurrection, is always a feast day, and therefore fasting on Sundays is forbidden. Since there are six Sundays in Lent, we have to subtract them from the days of fasting. Forty-six minus six is forty. That's why, in the West, Lent starts on Ash Wednesday —to allow a full 40 days of fasting before Easter Sunday . But I Gave It Up . . . Unlike earlier generations of Christians, most of us don't actually fast every day during Lent, in the sense of reducing the amount of food we eat and not eating between meals. Still, when we give something up for Lent, that's a form of fasting. Therefore, that sacrifice cannot be binding on the Sundays within Lent. So I Should Pig Out on Sundays, Right? Not so fast (no pun intended). Just because your Lenten sacrifice isn't binding on Sundays doesn't mean that you have to go out of your way on Sundays to indulge in whatever you gave up for Lent.

But in the same respect, you should not actively avoid it (assuming that it is something good that you've deprived yourself of, rather than something that you shouldn't do or consume anyway). To do so would be fasting, and that's forbidden on Sundays—even during Lent. Where Can I Learn More? If you want a more in-depth examination of the history of the Lenten fast, and the distinction between it and the liturgical season of Lent, including quotations from relevant Church documents and historical sources, you can find it in The 40 Days of Lent: A Short History of the Lenten Fast . History of Lent History of Lent FR. WILLIAM SAUNDERS What are the origins of Lent? Did the Church always have this time before Easter? Lent is a special time of prayer, penance, sacrifice and good works in preparation of the celebration of Easter. In the desire to renew the liturgical practices of the Church, The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy of Vatican Council II stated, "The two elements which are especially characteristic of Lent -- the recalling of baptism or the preparation for it, and penance -- should be given greater emphasis in the liturgy and in liturgical catechesis.

It is by means of them that the Church prepares the faithful for the celebration of Easter, while they hear God's word more frequently and devote more time to prayer" (no. 109). The word Lent itself is derived from the Anglo-Saxon words lencten, meaning "Spring," and lenctentid, which literally means not only "Springtide" but also was the word for "March," the month in which the majority of Lent falls. Since the earliest times of the Church, there is evidence of some kind of Lenten preparation for Easter. For instance, St. Irenaeus (d. 203) wrote to Pope St. Victor I, commenting on the celebration of Easter and the differences between practices in the East and the West: "The dispute is not only about the day, but also about the actual character of the fast. Some think that they ought to fast for one day, some for two, others for still more; some make their 'day' last 40 hours on end.

Such variation in the observance did not originate in our own day, but very much earlier, in the time of our forefathers" (Eusebius, History of the Church, V, 24). When Rufinus translated this passage from Greek into Latin, the punctuation made between "40" and "hours" made the meaning to appear to be "40 days, twenty-four hours a day." The importance of the passage, nevertheless, remains that since the time of "our forefathers" -- always an expression for the apostles -- a 40-day period of Lenten preparation existed. However, the actual practices and duration of Lent were still not homogenous throughout the Church. Lent becomes more regularized after the legalization of Christianity in A.D. 313. The Council of Nicea (325), in its disciplinary canons, noted that two provincial synods should be held each year, "one before the 40 days of Lent." St. Athanasius (d. 373) in this "Festal Letters" implored his congregation to make a 40-day fast prior to the more intense fasting of Holy Week. St. Cyril of Jerusalem (d.

386) in his Catechectical Lectures, which are the paradigm for our current RCIA programs, had 18 pre-baptismal instructions given to the catechumens during Lent. St. Cyril of Alexandria (d. 444) in his series of "Festal Letters" also noted the practices and duration of Lent, emphasizing the 40-day period of fasting. Finally, Pope St. Leo (d. 461) preached that the faithful must "fulfill with their fasts the Apostolic institution of the 40 days," again noting the apostolic origins of Lent. One can safely conclude that by the end of the fourth century, the 40-day period of Easter preparation known as Lent existed, and that prayer and fasting constituted its primary spiritual exercises. Of course, the number "40" has always had special spiritual significance regarding preparation. On Mount Sinai, preparing to receive the Ten Commandments, "Moses stayed there with the Lord for 40 days and 40 nights, without eating any food or drinking any water" (Ex 34:28).

Elijah walked "40 days and 40 nights" to the mountain of the Lord, Mount Horeb (another name for Sinai) (I Kgs 19:8). Most importantly, Jesus fasted and prayed for "40 days and 40 nights" in the desert before He began His public ministry (Mt 4:2). Once the 40 days of Lent were established, the next development concerned how much fasting was to be done. In Jerusalem, for instance, people fasted for 40 days, Monday through Friday, but not on Saturday or Sunday, thereby making Lent last for eight weeks. In Rome and in the West, people fasted for six weeks, Monday through Saturday, thereby making Lent last for six weeks. Eventually, the practice prevailed of fasting for six days a week over the course of six weeks, and Ash Wednesday was instituted to bring the number of fast days before Easter to 40. The rules of fasting varied. First, some areas of the Church abstained from all forms of meat and animal products, while others made exceptions for food like fish. For example, Pope St. Gregory (d. 604), writing to St.

Augustine of Canterbury, issued the following rule: "We abstain from flesh, meat, and from all things that come from flesh, as milk, cheese and eggs." Nevertheless, I was always taught, "If you gave something up for the Lord, tough it out. Don't act like a Pharisee looking for a loophole." Second, the general rule was for a person to have one meal a day, in the evening or at 3 p.m. These Lenten fasting rules also evolved. Eventually, a smaller repast was allowed during the day to keep up one's strength from manual labor. Eating fish was allowed, and later eating meat was also allowed through the week except on Ash Wednesday and Friday. Dispensations were given for eating dairy products if a pious work was performed, and eventually this rule was relaxed totally. (However, the abstinence from even dairy products led to the practice of blessing Easter eggs and eating pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday.) Over the years, modifications have been made to the Lenten observances, making our practices not only simple but also easy. Ash Wednesday still marks the beginning of Lent, which lasts for 40 days, not including Sundays.

The present fasting and abstinence laws are very simple: On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, the faithful fast (having only one full meal a day and smaller snacks to keep up one's strength) and abstain from meat; on the other Fridays of Lent, the faithful abstain from meat. People are still encouraged "to give up something" for Lent as a sacrifice. (An interesting note is that technically on Sundays and solemnities like St. Joseph's Day (March 19) and the Annunciation (March 25), one is exempt and can partake of whatever has been offered up for Lent. Nevertheless, I was always taught, "If you gave something up for the Lord, tough it out. Don't act like a Pharisee looking for a loophole." Moreover, an emphasis must be placed on performing spiritual works, like attending the Stations of the Cross, attending Mass, making a weekly holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament, taking time for personal prayer and spiritual reading and most especially making a good confession and receiving sacramental absolution. Although the practices may have evolved over the centuries, the focus remains the same: to repent of sin, to renew our faith and to prepare to celebrate joyfully the mysteries of our salvation.

Acknowledgement Saunders, Rev. William. "History of Lent." Arlington Catholic Herald. This article is reprinted with permission from Arlington Catholic Herald. The Author Father William Saunders is pastor of Our Lady of Hope parish in Potomac Falls, Virginia. He is dean of the Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College. The above article is a "Straight Answers" column he wrote for the Arlington Catholic Herald. Father Saunders is the author of Straight Answers , a book based on 100 of his columns, and Straight Answers II . The Official Lent Countdown @ Things Of Interest Things Of Interest Blog The Official Lent Countdown Yay! I'm sure you're all as excited as I am about Lent! You'd have to have a heart of stone not to be! I've got all my Lent decorations up, the snow is falling, traditional Lent songs are playing on the radio, everybody I know is filled with Lent spirit... this is going to be the best Lent ever. Anyway, I'm so excited about Lent that I made this: The Official Lent Countdown! Lent facts! Someone who observes Lent is called a "Lenter". The act of observing Lent is called "Lenting". Lent does not technically include any Sundays between Ash Wednesday and Easter Saturday.

That's why this period, traditionally lasting forty days, actually takes up forty-six on your calendar. So... ...don't count as part of Lent! Due to Daylight Saving, Lent lasts not 46 days but 45 days 23 hours in many territories. Lent was invented in 1809 by an Englishman named Wilhelm Lent. It was originally a forty-day diet plan, during which people would forgo certain foods in order to lose weight for Easter. On Sundays these restrictions were temporarily lifted and you could eat anything you liked; that's why Sundays don't count as part of Lent (see above). Wilhelm Lent is also the inventor of lentils! Lenting is extremely dangerous for periods greater than forty days. There are even some medical records from the 1900s where the doctor wrote "Cause of death: Lent"! Lenters are particularly at risk if they are exposed to strong magnetic fields or small doses of radiation. That's why in a hospital X-ray or MRI department, you'll often see a discreet sign saying "No Lenting". "Lent" is also the past tense of the verb "to lend".

It's not to be confused with "leant", which is pronounced exactly the same, but is the past tense of the verb "to lean", or "Rent", which is a Broadway musical. "Lent" can also be used as a musical term, meaning "Very slowly"! The Game Of Lent was a board game first manufactured by Mattel in 1962. Players chose from six pieces of varying shades of grey, each representing a different vice, and took turns rolling dice and answering questions on obscure Christian dogma in an attempt to make it to the end of the forty-space-long board without giving in to temptation. Containing such classic questions as "Who begat Amminadab?" and "Which chapter of Leviticus begins, 'And the Lord spake unto Moses'?", the game was supremely unpopular and taken off the market by 1965. Games still containing all the pieces are now extremely rare and fetch up to USD1000 at auctions. Miramax Studios acquired the movie rights to Lent in 1990, and in 1993 there were plans to turn Lent into an action/romance called "The Lenter", starring John Candy.

Unfortunately Candy's death in 1994 caused the studio to drop the project, though the proposed script can still be found online. When Does Lent Start, End & Over: 2015 Dates, How Long Is It | Heavy.com Get Heavy's Top 5 News Stories Every Day We will never share your email address. When Does Lent Start & End 2015? Published Updated 4:50 pm EST, April 3, 2015 8 Comments By Lauren Weigle 232 Share Tweet Share Email Follow The first day of Lent is Ash Wednesday and for 2015, the date is February 18th. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, which is the when Christians prepare for the celebration of Easter, which is on April 5, 2015. Lent is believed to be a time for sacrificing as it’s the season of penance and prayer, which is why many fast, give up meat or rid themselves of delicious treats. It’s almost looked at as a sort of “spring-cleaning” for your life. Project Britain explains: The Christian church no longer imposes a strict fast.

Lent is a time when some Christians try to overcome their own faults because they believe that it was man’s sin which led Jesus to be crucified. Some Christians try to follow the example of Jesus in the desert by giving up luxuries and practicing self-discipline. And they try to put aside more time to prayer and religious acts so that they can really let God into their lives. So, how are the days of Lent calculated? AboutReligion.com reports: Lent, the period of prayer and fasting in preparation for Easter, is 40 days long, but there are 46 days between Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent in the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar, and Easter … Since all Sundays—and not simply Easter Sunday—were days to celebrate Christ’s Resurrection, Christians were forbidden to fast and do other forms of penance on those days. Therefore, when the Church expanded the period of fasting and prayer in preparation for Easter from a few days to 40 days (to mirror Christ’s fasting in the desert, before He began His public ministry), Sundays could not be included in the count.

Lent ends on Holy Saturday, which is the day before Easter, so this year, it ends on April 4, 2015. Because Easter occurs on a different date each year, so does Lent. When is Lent 2017 & 2018? Dates of Lent Lent 2017 When is Lent 2017? Lent 2017 starts on Wednesday, March 1, 2017 (in 52 days) and ends on Saturday, April 15th 2017 (in 96 days). What is Lent? Lent celebrants participating in a street procession during Holy Week . Lent is the annual period of Christian observance that precedes Easter . The dates of Lent are defined by the date of Easter, which is a moveable feast, meaning that it falls on a different date each year. Lent starts on Ash Wednesday and its observance (although not its liturgical period ï¿½ see below) lasts for 40 days, mirroring the 40 days that Jesus spent fasting in the wilderness before starting his ministry.

It can also be seen to mirror the 40 hours that Jesus spent in the tomb prior to his resurrection. Lent is a penitential period, involving the dual disciplines of abstinence and fasting. During Lent many Christians commit to fasting or giving up certain foods, habits or luxuries - for example meat, cakes and sweets, alcohol, smoking - for its duration (the money saved is often then donated to charity). This is done both as a form of penitence and as a spiritual tool to tame the body and 'sharpen the spirit' for prayer, reflection and contemplation in preparation for the celebration of Easter. Lent lasts for 40 days and the first day is always Ash Wednesday (the day after Pancake Day ). Nevertheless, there is often confusion as to when Lent ends! This is partly due to the fact that there are in fact always 46 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday , and partly due to confusion between the period of the Lenten fast and the liturgical 'season' or period of Lent. The Lenten Fast (which is the period that most people consider to be 'Lent') starts on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Saturday ( Easter Saturday ). This is a period of 46 days.

However, the six Sundays within the period are not fast days (Sundays are always feast days in the Christian calendar) and therefore not counted in the 40 days of Lent. The liturgical period of Lent also begins on Ash Wednesday, however it ends on the evening of Holy Thursday ( Maundy Thursday ). In addition, Palm Sunday (or alternatively the day before Palm Sunday) is sometimes considered to be the last day of Lent. This is incorrect and based on a misunderstanding about the liturgical periods of Lent and Holy Week . They are not exclusive of each other, and Lent in fact continues into Holy Week (see above), meaning that the liturgical season of Lent ends on Holy Thursday. Purple is the color most associated with Lent - during this period purple church vestments (altar cloths and the priests' liturgical garments) are used. The purple is symbolic in two ways: it is the traditional color of mourning (recalling Jesus' death) and also symbolic of royalty (celebrating Christ's coming as King). In Eastern Orthodox Christianity Lent is called 'Great Lent' and is the most important fasting period of the year, in preparation for the most important celebration of the year, Pascha (Orthodox Easter Sunday).

As in Western Christianity, the period of Lent differs in its dates from year to year, with the dates defined by the date of Pascha, which is a movable feast. Great Lent begins on Clean Monday (the beginning of the 7th week before Pascha) and runs for 40 days (including Sundays) until Lazarus Saturday (the day before Palm Sunday). Fasting continues until the morning of Pascha. Further reading:

Question: Not including Sundays, how many days are there in Lent?
Answer: 40