Lent

Last year Lent was a very powerful time for me since I had the great blessing of being Ryan's sponsor in his preparation to be confirmed. So I want to do something else special this year too. I have been wanting to start praying before meals so Ryan and I have made a commitment to pray together before dinner. I also goggled "things to do during lent" and came across some ideas. Now I'm determined to get reconciled during lent this year.

I've also always wondered why there are 44 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter if Lent is traditionally 40 days long. So I found the answer and now I am sharing it with you:

A long time ago, Lent began the sixth Sunday before Easter and ended at dusk on Holy Thursday—40 days. But the Church 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 also wanted literally 40 days of penance before Easter. The first step was to to add Good Friday and Holy Saturday as fasting days to make 36 fasting days.

Now, the Wednesday beforoe the first Sunday of Lent was already a day of fasting throughout the year. 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.