With Ash Wednesday being only two weeks from tomorrow, I thought that now would be a good time to offer you a brief video titled Lent FAQ with Joe Paprocki. It includes some simple answers to some of the frequently asked questions about the Lenten season.
- Why do we have a season of Lent?
- Why is Lent 40 days?
- Why do we start Lent by wearing ashes?
- Why do we practice prayer, fasting, and giving alms during Lent?
- Why do we give things up during Lent?
- Why do we give up meat on Fridays during Lent?
- Why is purple the color of Lent?
- Why do we pray the Stations of the Cross during Lent?
- Is Lent a sad or somber time?
By all means, please pass along the link to this video to your fellow catechists and to anyone associated with your religious education program (the kids, the parents, etc.)
Hi Joe,
I would love to pass on the link to this video to RE families and catechists – but I don’t see the link. Am I missing it?
By the way, your blog is certainly one of my favorites for resourcing catechists! Thank you!!
Hi Susan. I’m glad you’re finding my blog to be a good resource for your catechists! I’ll amend my post to make the link more evident. You can invite catechists to link to this post:
https://catechistsjourney.loyolapress.com/2009/02/10/lent-faq-with-joe-paprocki-a-short-video/
or directly to the video on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2RUeGwShDg
Dear Joe,
How does one correctly count the 40 days of Lent?
Ruth Ard, DRE
St. Joseph Parish
Marion, Iowa
Hi Ruth. Good question. There are 2 schools of thought. One is that you count from Ash Wednesday through Holy Saturday which is 46 days,minus the 6 Sundays of Lent because Sundays are not to be days of penance. The problem with this is that Lent ends on Holy Thursday with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper! The other school of thought is that, while Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, the “counting” begins with the First Sunday of Lent and continues until Holy Thursday, thus 40 days. This leaves Ash Wednesday and the 3 days that follow as sort of a “front porch” for the 40 days of Lent. It’s important to remember that the number 40 is a symbolic number – representing a significant amount of time during which one’s faith is tested and strengthened. We’re not supposed to get too scientific about the counting of the days but rather to get into the spirit of this significant season of preparation for Easter.