(A portion of the Widipedia definition of Lent)
Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and ends Holy Saturday (46 days).
Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and ends Holy Saturday (46 days).
"The six Sundays in Lent are not counted among the forty days because each Sunday represents a "mini-Easter", a celebration of Jesus' victory over sin and death."
The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer — through prayer, penitence, almsgiving and self-denial — for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, which recalls the events linked to the Passion of Christ and culminates in Easter, the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The forty days represent the time that Jesus spent in the wilderness before the beginning of his public ministry, where he endured temptation by Satan.
There you have it - that is Wikipedia's version of Lent. I left some parts out to make it a bit shorter.
Now lets talk about what it means to us personally.
For me, Lent is a time of focusing on the events that happened in Christ's life that led to his Crucifixion, death and that lead to Easter - His rising from the dead and over powering death.
A great practice can be the Stations of the Cross.
You can do the Stations of the Cross on the Internet anytime - Click Here
Say an Rosary online - Click Here
Divine Mercy Chaplet online - Click Here or Here
Meditate on the 7 Wounds of Jesus - Click Here
Go to Eucharistic Adoration - Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and just spend some time with Jesus.
Mediate on the death of our Savior - Here
Take a daily 3 minute retreat - Here
It is a time for me to do extra things that I probably wouldn't normally do to show Jesus that I want to have some sort of reconnecting with him.
One of the things that I try to do during Lent is read a certain book. I read one chapter everyday of Lent - well I try, some days I have to read 2 to make up for a missed day. No one is perfect and God doesn't expect us to be.
Of course, we all should give up meat on Ash Wednesday and all the Friday's of Lent. We are supposed to fast on Friday's and Ash Wednesday as well. That is harder.
I do give something up for Lent. That is a personal thing that should be between you and Jesus and try not to share it with others.
I try to teach the children that they can give something up as simple as not watching TV for a half hour a day, not playing a video game that they really like all through out Lent, give up a TV show for the 6 weeks, etc...
I also teach them that they can do something special too. Lent is a time for deprivation by choice, but it is also a time of giving of oneself by choice. They can help with household chores without being asked, etc... I do stress that they need to do it with a loving heart and can't complain or it doesn't "count".
Dear God, Help us to be mindful of the death of Your Son, Jesus. Help us especially during the season of Lent to respectfully remember what Jesus gave us through His death. Amen.
