What is Lent?

The word Lent comes from the old English word lencten. It signifies that time of the year when the days begin to lengthen. That time of the year is Spring! Lent is a word that really means "Spring”. In the Church Lent is a forty day period where we mark the days that Jesus spent in the wilderness. It is also the season of preparation for the passion and resurrection of Christ (Holy Week and Easter).

The first Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord's passion and resurrection, and it became the custom of the Church to prepare for them by a season of penitence and fasting. This season of Lent provided a time in which converts to the faith were prepared for Holy Baptism . It was also a time when those who, because of notorious sins, had been separated from the body of the faithful were reconciled by penitence and forgiveness. Book of Common Prayer pp. 264-265

We mark Lent with prayer, fasting and alms giving. We use the time for introspection, self -examination and repentance. It is a time to prepare for the amazing work of God's redemption at Easter.

Lent is also marked by the color purple which symbolizes Christ's suffering and his royalty. All crosses and icons are covered or veiled by purple cloth. All flowers are removed and no more "alleluias" are said until Easter day. This is all done to remind us of the suffering of Jesus and the consequences of our sin.

Traditionally, the church fasted from anything "of the flesh" which meant that meat, cheese, eggs, butter and milk were eliminated from the diet. Also, confession of sins was made before the beginning of Lent. The period of carnival, and the day of Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras, were created to prepare for Lent.

Carnival comes from the Latin carne levarium which is the removal of meat. Shrove Tuesday comes from the customary pre-Lenten "shrift" or confession. And Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday. They are all different names for the same time - a time to confess our sins and use up all of the meats, cheeses, eggs, butter and milk from our larders. Thus we have the traditions of the Shrove Tuesday pancake dinner or the King cake where all of these food items are used up.

In Anglicanism, and for most of the Western Churches, Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent. On Ash Wednesday a service is held where we enter this time corporately. Ash Wednesday is where we look to our own mortality and the consequences of sin. Times of penitence were often marked by the wearing of sackcloth and ashes. An outward sign of our penitence and mortality is the marking of our foreheads with ashes in the sign of the cross. We are reminded that we are "but dust and to dust we shall return" (Genesis 3:19). We are reminded that without Christ all we are is dust and ashes.

Although the fast is not as strictly observed today as in the ancient church, many now fast from meat every Friday during Lent and give up something like sweets, coffee, or television. The decision is an individual one, whatever you feel that God is calling you to.

The idea behind alms giving should come from a sacrifice made, like not buying sweets, magazines or a daily coffee and then giving the money saved to the poor.


Special Notes:

Traditionally, Ash Wednesday was marked by fasting and then ended with the consumption of something small and simple (i.e. the hot cross bun).

Sundays are not included in the fasts since Sundays celebrate the resurrection of Christ.

The ashes used on Ash Wednesday are made from the Palm Sunday palms of the
previous year.

Since Lent is a time for fasting, no fleshly things were consumed and small meals were instituted. A whole array of regional dishes were created to accommodate the fasts. Simple vegetarian soups were made: the split pea soup in Eastern Europe, the onion soup in France and Italy, and meals that centered around vegetables and fish.

The pretzel is the oldest Christian food and was created to accommodate the Lenten fast. It is made without using butter, milk, eggs. The shape is of arms folded in prayer.