Hey Deacon!

I was on the Catholic Answers website the other day, one of my go-to resources regarding questions about the faith, and I came across an article “Top 20 Questions about Lent: Traditions, fasting, and Biblical Insights.”   I found some of the Q&A entertaining and others more insightful.  As we begin our Lenten journey, I thought I would share a few that grabbed my attention over the next couple of Hey Deacon articles.

What is Lent?

Per the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Lent is a season of preparation for Easter, mirroring Jesus’ forty days in the desert and also anticipating His passion, death, and triumphant resurrection:

“By the solemn forty days of Lent the Church unites herself each year to the mystery of Jesus in the desert.” (CCC 540)

Additionally, CCC 1438 describes Lent as a penitential season:

The seasons and days of penance in the course of the liturgical year (Lent, and each Friday in memory of the death of the Lord) are intense moments of the Church’s penitential practice. These times are particularly appropriate for spiritual exercises, penitential liturgies, pilgrimages as signs of penance, voluntary self-denial such as fasting and almsgiving, and fraternal sharing (charitable and missionary works).

Thus, Lent is a season of spiritual preparation, one that not only looks forward to the joy of Jesus’ Resurrection (beginning with the Easter Octave), but also provides the faithful—both Catholics and those joining the Church—an annual opportunity to fortify their faith and grow in holiness for the sake of Christ’s kingdom (John 13:34-35; Matt. 6:10; 24:14).

What is the official beginning of Lent? At what hour?

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. Canon law considers a day to run from midnight to midnight (can. 202 §1). That would mean that Lent begins at 12 a.m. on Ash Wednesday.

Do Sundays "count" during Lent for fasting?

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) says:

Apart from the prescribed days of fast and abstinence on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and the days of abstinence every Friday of Lent, Catholics have traditionally chosen additional penitential practices for the whole Time of Lent. These practices are disciplinary in nature and often more effective if they are continuous, i.e., kept on Sundays as well. That being said, such practices are not regulated by the Church, but by individual conscience.

Is it a mortal sin to break a personal Lenten sacrifice?

Assuming that the action itself is not intrinsically a grave matter, then no, breaking one’s Lenten penance is not a mortal sin.

Can you eat turkey on a Friday in Lent?

No. Birds are considered meat according to the abstinence guidelines.

As we begin this sacred season, may our hearts be quiet from the noise of the world and may our spirits be open to the gentle voice of God.   Until next week. Happy Lent.