Lent is the solemn Chrisitan religious observance in the liturgical year in preparaiition for Easter. It echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, before beginning his public ministry.
For all the images that Lent can bring to mind—ashes, giving something up, meatless Fridays and fasting, the Stations of the Cross, the color purple, a greater commitment to attend Sunday Liturgy or perhaps to attend Mass daily, or the Sacrament of Reconciliation— do we ever ask ourselves: “Why Lent?”
Historically, we know that Lent, the forty days preceding the greatest feast of our Church, The Resurrection of the Lord, was a special time of preparation for the elect, those who were preparing for the Sacraments of Initiation during the Easter Vigil. As the Christian faith grew, Lent became a penitential season for all the faithful. With the reinstitution of the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA), the historical foundations of Lent as a season of preparation for the elect has been re-introduced into our liturgical practice. But again, “Why Lent?”
Lent begins this Wednesday, March 5, with our celebration of Ash Wednesday. Lent offers us a path like that of the elect which is an irreplaceable school of faith and Christian love. We need Lent to recommit and renew our baptism, the glory God shares with each of us freely and generously as adopted daughters and sons. Lent helps us to live as Christians, disciples of Christ each day, seeking an authentic living as the children of God. Pope Francis reminds us this year that Lent emphasizes the importance of living one’s life as a constant journey of conversion, choosing to walk in peace and hope aside one’s fellow humans.
In his message, Pope Francis wrote that this Lent is an opportunity to consider three areas where one may be in greater need of conversion: journeying with others, being synodal and living hope. "A first call to conversion,” he said, “comes from the realization that all of us are pilgrims in this life; each of us is invited to stop and ask how our lives reflect this fact. "Am I really on a journey, or am I standing still, not moving, either immobilized by fear and hopelessness or reluctant to move out of my comfort zone? Am I seeking ways to leave behind the occasions of sin and situations that degrade my dignity?” He also encouraged Catholics to be more synodal by journeying with others while avoiding self-absorption, exclusion, oppressing and excluding others, or being envious and hypocritical. “Let us all walk in the same direction, tending toward the same goal, attentive to one another in love and patience,” he urged.
Pope Francis said the call to hope and trust in God and in eternal life is also an important aspect of Lenten conversion. Some questions to ponder include: “Am I convinced that the Lord forgives my sins? Or do I act as if I can save myself? Do I long for salvation and call upon God’s help to attain it? Do I concretely experience the hope that enables me to interpret the events of history and inspires in me a commitment to justice and fraternity, to care for our common home and in such a way that no one feels excluded?” “This Lent, God is asking us to examine whether in our lives, in our families, in the places where we work and spend our time, we are capable of walking together with others, listening to them, resisting the temptation to become self-absorbed and to think only of our own needs,” he said.
During the days and weeks of penance that lie ahead--from Ash Wednesday, March 5, 2025, until Holy Thursday morning, April 17, 2025--the Catholic Church throughout the world commemorates the penitential season of Lent ending with the Sacred Triduum of Holy Week. The model Jesus gave us for “these forty days” was his own experience in the desert and the temptations that followed him there where he encountered Satan face to face. And yet, Jesus, there in the desert--alone, fasting and in intense prayer--beat back the devil and triumphed over temptation, as strong and as unrelenting as it was throughout those forty days.
We enter the desert of Lent like Jesus, led by the Holy Spirit, to face our devils, our temptations head on. But we are not alone. The Lord Jesus Christ is with us. And so, too, is the Church, the entire community of faith observing Lent. Here is what the Catholic Church in the United States requires of us as baptized Catholics:
- The days of FAST (only one full meal) and ABSTINENCE (no meat) are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. No dispensations are granted on these solemn days except for reason of sickness or those provided in canon law below. ALL OTHER FRIDAYS OF LENT are days of ABSTINENCE.
The pastor of a parish has the faculty to give a dispensation to individual parishioners in his parish and the Diocesan Bishop alone has the authority to dispense groups of Catholics but only for a serious reason. - Those who are automatically dispensed from fast and abstinence regulations outside the age limits noted below include: the physically or mentally ill, especially individuals suffering from chronic illnesses such as diabetes. Also included in the dispensation are women who are pregnant or nursing. In all cases, common sense should prevail, and ill persons should not further jeopardize their health by fasting.
- Those between the ages of 18 and 59 are obliged to FAST (only one full meal) as noted above. From the age of 14, people are also obliged to ABSTAIN: this obligation prohibits the eating of meat, but not eggs, milk products or condiments of any kind, even though made from animal fat.
- The obligation to observe the laws of fast and abstinence is a serious one for Catholics. Failure to observe one penitential day in itself is not considered a serious sin. It is the intentional failure to observe any penitential days at all, or a substantial number of penitential days, that must be considered a serious matter.
- The obligation, the privilege really, of receiving the Eucharist at least once a year--often called “Easter duty”--for those in the state of grace should still be fulfilled during the period from the First Sunday of Lent, March 8-9, 2025, to Trinity Sunday, June 14-15, 2025. However, the Church’s law does permit this precept to be fulfilled at another time during the year when there is a just cause.
We do, indeed, fast and pray with the Lord Jesus and with our fellow Catholics. May this Lent be a time of Penance leading to grace and joy for us all at Easter.
