How long does Lent last?

[TheStiegler]

Lent is 40 days, but if you'll notice, the time from Ash Wednesday to Easter is 46 days. So the way it's done is that Sunday's don't count. That way the 40 days of Lent matchs the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert.

The church bulletin always says the 23rd Sunday of Pentacost, or the 4th Sunday of Advent, but this Sunday will be the 3rd Sunday in Lent.

 

[MerakSpielman]

Here's a question I've always wondered.

Why is Easter on the day it's on? I believe they place it on the first sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox. Shouldn't it be a fixed DAY, like Christmas?

 

[dcas]

TheStiegler has it spot on.

Actually, giving up something for Lent, while a popular devotion, isn't a precept of the Church. It has taken off in popularity since the fasting restrictions for Lent were eased. It used to be that one had to fast (meaning: one meal and two smaller meals which put together don't equal the main meal) on every weekday (including Saturdays) in Lent, as well as abstaining on Wednesdays and Fridays. Now only Ash Wednesday and Good Friday remain as fast days.

Since Sundays aren't strictly part of Lent, some people 'cheat' on their self-imposed penances.

When I taught CCD I used to encourage the kids to give up video games or television for Lent. It was very difficult for them.

The important thing to remember, I think, is not to go overboard. Don't try to give up something that you can't give up.

 

[Jenale]

Another Catholic here--and yes, it is 40 days from Ash Wednesday until Easter, with Sundays not counted. Sundays are not counted because *every* Sunday is a feast day in honor of the Resurrection (call it a mini-Easter, if you will).

Why does the date of Easter move around? Well, the simple answer is that the date of Easter was originally tied to the date of Passover (just like it happened in the narratives of the Gospels). The Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar, and "slips" relative to the solar calendar. You see the same thing happen with the dates of Jewish holy days such as Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Passover (Pesach), etc. It's just that, for the most part, the number of people following the Christian holy days (whether they are Christian or not) is far larger than the number of people following Jewish holy days (how many non-Jewish people really pay attention to when Yom Kippur falls?), so the movement of Easter is noticed more often than the movement of Passover.

Early in the Christian era, it was decided to always observe Easter on a Sunday (as Passover can start on any day of the week, and while the date of Easter was strictly tied to the date of Passover, that meant that Easter could fall on a day of the week other than Sunday) due to that "every Sunday is a mini-Easter" line of thought (putting it simply--I mean, there is a *lot* of writing on the subject if you really want to get into it).

I'm not sure at which point it was, but at some point further down the course of history, it became less important in the Western Church to tie Easter and Passover together, so that the rule is that Easter will fall on the Sunday following the full moon after the vernal equinox. So, if the full moon happened to fall on the date just before the vernal equinox, you'd have to wait for the next full moon (throwing Easter well into April). The earliest possible date for Easter therefore is March 23 and the latest possible date is April 25.

The Orthodox consider it necessary for Easter to follow the start of Passover, therefore their observation of Easter may fall on a different date than those who follow the Catholic dating (which, interestingly enough, includes Protestants).

 

[Dinkeldog]

Lent is 40 days, but if you'll notice, the time from Ash Wednesday to Easter is 46 days. So the way it's done is that Sunday's don't count. That way the 40 days of Lent matchs the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert.

The church bulletin always says the 23rd Sunday of Pentacost, or the 4th Sunday of Advent, but this Sunday will be the 3rd Sunday in Lent.

Oh, yeah, I think a few people (like me) forgot that. Lent doesn't end on Easter, it ends on Palm Sunday. It's specifically the period that Jesus spent in the desert before his triumphant return.

 

[dcas]

Oh, yeah, I think a few people (like me) forgot that. Lent doesn't end on Easter, it ends on Palm Sunday. It's specifically the period that Jesus spent in the desert before his triumphant return.

Strictly speaking, it used to end on Holy Saturday before the Easter Vigil. Now it ends on Maundy Thursday before the Mass of the Lord's Supper -- Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday are now known as the "Triduum." Of course this means that Lent no longer has 40 days, so it can get a little confusing.

 

[dcas]

I'm not sure at which point it was, but at some point further down the course of history, it became less important in the Western Church to tie Easter and Passover together, so that the rule is that Easter will fall on the Sunday following the full moon after the vernal equinox. So, if the full moon happened to fall on the date just before the vernal equinox, you'd have to wait for the next full moon (throwing Easter well into April). The earliest possible date for Easter therefore is March 23 and the latest possible date is April 25.

The Orthodox consider it necessary for Easter to follow the start of Passover, therefore their observation of Easter may fall on a different date than those who follow the Catholic dating (which, interestingly enough, includes Protestants).

I think this has more do to with the Gregorian reform of the calendar than anything else. The Orthodox Easter is the first Sunday following the first full moon following the vernal equinox according to the old (Julian) calendar. The Julian calendar is currently 13 days behind the Gregorian calendar, which is why Orthodox Christmas falls on January 7 instead of December 25. (Actually, some Orthodox follow the Gregorian calendar for Christmas, but all follow the Julian calendar for Easter. Very confusing.) The upshot of this is that Orthodox Easter is usually one week after the Catholic Easter (sometimes four weeks after, sometimes five weeks after, and sometimes the same). I believe it is one week after this year, although I'm not certain as Passover falls on (Catholic) Maundy Thursday.

Funny thing is that I gave up posting on Catholic message boards for Lent. I should probably stop posting on this topic here before I violate the spirit of the law.

 

[Jenale]

At the risk of drawing you in again--I think you are right about the Gregorian calendar reform being the origin of the Western Church's change of dating Easter. I still think there's something about the Passover issue that connects with the Orthodox dating--since the vernal equinox is an astronomical event that takes place at the same time no matter what calendar date it is.

I did look these up, and came up with--for the year 2003:
Western Easter: April 20
Orthodox Easter: April 27
Passover: April 17, April 24 (These are listed with one above each other, no punctuation--perhaps a Jewish member of these boards could help out here--is that a start-end?)

Next year, however, both Catholic and Orthodox calendars agree on April 11 as the date of Easter. (Passover dates given as April 6, April 13).

 

[dcas]

At the risk of drawing you in again--I think you are right about the Gregorian calendar reform being the origin of the Western Church's change of dating Easter. I still think there's something about the Passover issue that connects with the Orthodox dating--since the vernal equinox is an astronomical event that takes place at the same time no matter what calendar date it is.

True, but the dating of Easter always used a calendar date of March 21 (or was it March 20 that was used?) for the vernal equinox, no matter when it fell. I should have been more specific here.

I did look these up, and came up with--for the year 2003:
Western Easter: April 20
Orthodox Easter: April 27
Passover: April 17, April 24 (These are listed with one above each other, no punctuation--perhaps a Jewish member of these boards could help out here--is that a start-end?)

It's the start-end.

I don't know if the Jewish calendar has changed at all in the last 2000 years. However, the Last Supper was celebrated on the first night of Passover (Nisan 14 according to the Jewish calendar), so the Catholic Easter is closer to the actual date (according to the Hebrew calendar) of the Resurrection this time.

I do have a question for any Jewish board-members who might be reading this -- When did Passover and the Feast of the Unleavened Bread become synonymous? If I remember right Passover began on Nisan 14 and the Unleavened Bread on Nisan 15.

Next year, however, both Catholic and Orthodox calendars agree on April 11 as the date of Easter. (Passover dates given as April 6, April 13).

Yes. Have you ever attended the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts? Very beautiful liturgy -- the Orthodox attribute it, interestingly enough, to St. Gregory the Great.

 

[shadow]

Magic is harder to give up than smoking. Magic addicts always have withdrawl symtpoms. Usually they fail to kick the card habit the first few times around.

Seriously though, I gave up soda for lent.