Introduction to Lent, Year A

The Season of Lent is a six-week season in the Christian Calendar, beginning on Ash Wednesday and ending on Easter Sunday. Lent is a time of preparation for Easter as Christians practice repentance and reflection and take stock of their lives.

For most Christians, Lent is a time of quiet, prayer, fasting, repentance, almsgiving and holy living. Based on Jesus’ example of fasting in the wilderness for 40 days, Christians often fast during the season of Lent. While few probably give up food altogether, many Christians will choose to abstain from one or two particular things during the season of Lent, such as indulging in chocolate and takeaways or abstaining from social media or TV. Another common practice during Lent is for Christians to take up a “good deed.” For example, they might make daily monetary donations, serve at a soup kitchen during Lent or commit daily time to prayer and bible study.

The Season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday. Christians are marked with a cross of ash on their foreheads to remind them that “they come from dust and to dust they will return.” It is a solemn occasion where people are reminded of their own frailty and desperate need of Divine help. The Ash that is used during this service is usually created from burning the palm branches from the previous year’s Palm Sunday service mixed with a small amount of water or oil.

It is tradition in many churches to host a feast on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Lent begins. The original intention of this feast was to finish any bread and fresh produce that might go stale during the upcoming season of Lent. In modern days, many churches will host a pancake evening or something similar to encourage fellowship, celebration and feasting before the solemn season of Lent begins where many people might be giving up sugar or sweets. Pancakes are associated with Shrove Tuesday because they are a way to use up rich foods such as eggs, milk, and sugar – which are not usually eaten during the season of Lent. It is also common for Christians to use Shrove Tuesday as an opportunity to consider what sacrifices they might decide to make during Lent.

Depending on whether Sundays are excluded, as is common in some denominations, the season of Lent ends on Easter Sunday or at the beginning of Holy Week on Palm Sunday. Any fasting usually continues until after the Easter Service on Easter Sunday.

The liturgical colour for Lent is purple. Many churches prefer to remove all decorations and colour from their churches during this season to signify the solemn observance of this time.

Some common rituals during the season of Lent are: marking of ash, journeying through the stations of the cross, following a daily devotional, committing to regular prayer and bible study, almsgiving and fasting.