Hi! I’m Paul – a retired IT professional who cares about helping others through my life’s array of experiences. To learn more about me, read my bio. Thanks! Lent
Reasons Why Lent is a Joyful and Exciting Season
Introduction
I am a Roman Catholic layperson who does his best to celebrate the Lenten season every year. In the past when I thought of Lent, I used to get anxious. I worried about fasting and not eating meat on Fridays. Also, following all the other rules for Lent worried me while going about my daily life. I would get so worked up that making sure to follow the rules became the focus. Finally, I came to realize that I was missing the point of the season.
But joyful, yes! How can sacrifice, suffering, and the death of our lord and savior be joyful? I’ll explain. I will do my best to clarify the season as I see it. Research for this article confirmed my view.
What is Lent?
The Lenten season is a time to prepare for Easter. To do this, we use three pillars the church provides from Ash Wednesday through Holy Thursday. They help focus our efforts during the 40 days of Lent. These pillars are prayer, fasting and almsgiving.
Prayer
Prayer is the way we communicate to God through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. It is a two-way street. As Christians, we talk with God and Jesus through prayer. But, as important is listening to get His guidance. Prayer is not only asking for something of God. God wants to hear from us about all things. Yet, we need to use prayer for reflection, reconciliation and penance to hear Him. Prayer will give us the strength we need to be the best Christians we can be.
Fasting
Fasting is using self-denial as a form of repentance and prayer. It puts us in a position to humble ourselves in the eyes of God. Fasting lets the Holy Spirit reveal our true spiritual condition. This results in brokenness, repentance, and a changed life. We strengthen our confidence and faith in God. Our mental, spiritual, and physical nature refreshes. During a fast, it is important to put time aside for prayer and not fast for the sake of fasting.
Almsgiving
Giving alms is about donating your time, money, services, or resources to others. This is especially for the less fortunate. Simply donate food to your local soup kitchen or food bank. Tutor a schoolchild or mentor a college graduate. Increase your donation to your local parish.
Using the three pillars we focus on a time of reflection, cleansing, penance, and sacrifice. The Lenten season concludes with Holy Week. It commemorates the resurrection of our Lord and Savior on Easter Sunday.
Some nice sites to help with the understanding of the season are:
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB’s)
Who celebrates Lent?
You may think all Christians celebrate Lent. But, that’s actually not the case. Many Christians follow Lenten customs. Others do not do traditional Lenten practices, such as strict fasting. Christians honor the historical Lent tradition. They include Angelicans, Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Lutherans, and Methodists.
Why do people celebrate Lent?
People celebrate Lent because it reminds us of Christ’s 40 days in the wilderness. We remember that Jesus faced temptations from Satan. He stood firm against them. We start the Lenten season by receiving ashes on Ash Wednesday. They symbolize both death and repentance. During this time, Christians show repentance and mourn for our sins. They do this because Christ died for them. Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving help us remember. They remind us of the love and compassion that God shows all people.
As a sign of sacrifice and to test our self-discipline we give up things during this season. Christians believe this is to represent Jesus Christ’s sacrifice. He went into the desert to pray and fast for 40 days. Later, he died on the cross. We abstain from meat on Fridays as an added sacrifice. This is because on Good Friday, Jesus sacrificed his flesh for humanity. Some Christians follow specific dietary regulations. Others fast on certain days. Some give up favorite foods. This increases their cravings for God. Others abstain from fun activities. They do this to spend more time in prayer. Some give extra time and money to charities.
Things to offer up in the name of Lent
The following is a list of ideas one can give up during Lent:
Chocolate: Many people choose to abstain from sweets during Lent as a form of self-denial.
Soft Drinks: Giving up soda and energy drinks can promote healthier habits.
Social Media: Breaks from social media create more time. This time is for prayer, thought, and in-person talks.
Meat: Many Christians abstain from eating meat on Fridays during Lent as a form of penance.
Fast Food: Avoiding fast food helps individuals adopt healthier eating habits.
Alcohol: Abstaining from alcohol can promote sobriety and self-control.
Smoking or Vaping: Lent is an opportunity to quit smoking or vaping and focus on improving health.
Caffeine: Giving up caffeine is hard. Caffeine is in coffee and tea for example. But, it may lead to less dependency.
Online Shopping: Avoiding online purchases helps curb unnecessary spending and materialism.
Swearing: Some people choose to give up swearing for Lent. They do it to promote better speech.
Screen Time: Cutting screen time creates space for prayer, reading, or time with loved ones.
Video Games: giving up video games can encourage productivity and self-discipline.
Gossip: Abstaining from gossip and negative talk can foster healthier relationships.
Junk Food: Cutting out junk food and processed snacks can lead to better nutrition.
Sleeping in: Waking up earlier for prayer or meditation can help. It can lead to a more focused and productive day.
How does this apply to all?
In an article I read, the difference between Christmas and Easter is the season. This author gave an example of the Christmas season, called Advent. It starts after Thanksgiving and builds in anticipation as Christmas draws close. There are functions, parties and gift giving. Easter is one day according to this writer’s example.
Some people look down on devout followers’ acts. There are no parties and other than an Easter basket with some candy and a toy, that is it. Those who do not practice Lent have something missing making Easter Sunday one day.
The point is that Lent does have a purpose for everyone. If we keep some things discussed in mind we could be changed. They force us to think of the bad parts to Lent. The Lenten season encourages living without sin and limits the need for instant pleasure. If you think about it Lent help us to lower our defenses and be realistic and helps us to be doing what we should be doing.
Whether you are a practicing Christian or not, you can make Lent apply to you. To expand on these thoughts from that author please check out the article at the website Of The Hearth.
What are the rules to follow?
As we have been discussing, there are many “rules” or acts to follow/perform to get the best from the Lenten season. The links throughout this post will give you all you need to do to follow Lent and get the most out of the season. Yet, the simplest approach if you feel overwhelmed is to follow the three pillars.
Fasting – What can you eat and do during Lent? Click here.
Prayer, Penance and Reconciliation – Go to mass often and go to confession during Lent.
Almsgiving – During Lent, focus on giving money or goods to the poor. Also, do other acts of charity.
Ash Wednesday
At the start of the forty-day Lenten season, we have Ash Wednesday. Lent is a chance for renewal and ends on Easter Sunday. It is a time to focus on turning away from sin and to Christ our Lord and savior.
Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday, also known as Passion Sunday, is the Sunday before Easter and marks the start of Holy Week. It shows the welcoming of Jesus into Jerusalem. Two good articles on the significance of Palm Sunday are here and here. On Palm Sunday, the masses remember the celebration. They remember Jesus entering Jerusalem with palms. They also remember the unnerving death of Jesus with the reading of the Passion.
Holy Week
Holy week marks the week with several solum events. The week starts with normal Lenten days. On these days, the prayerful anticipation of Christ’s death and resurrection continues. The latter part of the week is:
Thursday: Mass of the Lord’s Supper. Washing of the feet of Jesus’ disciples by Jesus.
Friday: Veneration of the Cross. This means kissing the cross to remember Jesus’ suffering and death on it.
Friday: Stations of the Cross are a prayerful remembrance. They recall the path Jesus took to his crucifixion. He rose three days later.
Saturday: Easter Vigil Mass is the Mass of Jesus’s resurrection. The day individuals who were preparing to join the faith do so. They receive the sacraments of baptism, eucharist, and confirmation.
Sunday: Easter Mass. Mass of the resurrection of Jesus.
Why is Lent Joyful?
Do you see it? This post has provided a lot of information. Does any of this make you see the joy in Lent? I see it. We all can experience this joy. It is an opportunity to get closer to Jesus and improve our lives. It is through sacrifice and charity that we grow. We get to remind ourselves of what Jesus went through FOR US. Although what Jesus went through is difficult and hard to hear, we know that because of it, we can get to heaven. For this we are joyful.
More resources on the joy of Lent to check out are:
So there is no longer any anxiety in the Lenten season for me. I focus on why Lent is important and the true reason for the season. I get ashes on Ash Wednesday. They remind me to turn from sin and be faithful to the Gospel. This happens in my actions throughout the season. The season and throughout Holy Week make me feel closer to my Lord and Savior. This is what makes the Lenten season joyful for me.
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2 Responses
I agree that prayer, fasting and almsgiving help us grow closer to Jesus. I enjoyed reading the websites you included. Good suggestions of things to give up for Lent. Love the Do and Don’t list!
Thanks for your thoughts Mary Anne. Happy Lent!