The season of Lent

The Season of Lent is an important religious period for Christians everywhere. Not everyone is sure exactly what Lent signifies, but you’d nearly have to be raised on another planet not to be aware of Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) which has its origins in a custom associated with lent. Lent represents the forty day temptation of Christ in the desert. In most western churches it is calculated as the forty days before Eastern excluding Sundays. Mardi Gras is a time of feasting in order to have one last eating ( and often drinking) binge before the fasting and self-denial associated with the Season of Lent. The best known days within Lent are Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday.

Ash Wednesday is the first day of lent. The name comes from the custom of putting ashes on the forehead as a sign of repentance. We observe Ash Wednesday on February 25 this year. Maundy Thursday represents the day of the Last Supper of Christ with his disciples and the beginning of the sacrament of the Eucharist or Holy Communion. It is the Thursday before Easter, which falls on April 9 this year.