LENT                                                                                                                      By Jesse Romero M.A. (Catholic Evangelist & Apologist)

• “Lent” comes from the Anglo Saxon word “lencten” which means “spring.”
• “Quadragesima” comes from the Latin meaning “40 Days.”

Just think of the transformation God could accomplish if Catholics across America united together during Lent for 40 days of prayer and fasting, pulling out all the stops to end the violence of abortion. Imagine how many mothers and babies could be saved.

Lent & Ash Wednesday: Questions & Answers

1. Q) What is Lent?
   A) Lent is a 40-day period of penitence and spiritual self-examination which is observed by Christians worldwide. 40 days is about a tenth of a year, this is the way we spiritually tithe to God every year.

1. Q) Why is Lent forty days long?
2. A) Because forty days is a traditional number of discipline, devotion, and preparation in the Bible. Thus Moses stayed on the Mountain of God forty days (Exodus 24:18 and 34:28), the spies were in the land for forty days (Numbers 13:25), Elijah traveled forty days before he reached the cave where he had his vision (1 Kings 19:8), Nineveh was given forty days to repent (Jonah 3:4), and most importantly, prior to undertaking his ministry, Jesus spent forty days in wilderness praying and fasting (Matthew 4:2). Since Lent is a period of prayer and fasting, it is fitting for Christians to imitate their Lord with a forty day period. Christ used a forty day period of prayer and fasting to prepare for his ministry, which culminated in his death and resurrection, and thus it is fitting for Christians to imitate him with a forty day period of prayer and fasting to prepare for the celebration of his ministry’s climax, Good Friday (the day of the crucifixion) and Easter Sunday (the day of the resurrection). Thus the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “‘For we have not a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sinning’ [Heb 4:15]. By the solemn forty days of Lent the Church unites herself each year to the mystery of Jesus in the desert.” (CCC 540).

1. Q) When does Lent start? End?
   A) Lent begins each year on Ash Wednesday and ends before Holy Thursday Mass of the ‘Last
   ’ Then we enter the ‘Holy Triduum’ which is Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday.
2. Q) How does Lent relate to Jesus?
   A) Jesus spent 40 days and nights in the wilderness communing with God and preparing himself for the task he was called to do, as well as resisting the temptation to choose easier, more prideful ways to live out his days. During this time he fasted, which in his day meant that he was on a restricted diet—not that he didn’t eat or drink anything at all.
3. Q) I count 46 days from Ash Wednesday to Easter. How do you explain that?
   A) Sundays are considered days of rejoicing and celebrating Jesus’ Resurrection. As a result, the Sundays between Ash Wednesday and Easter are not included in the days of penitence and sorrow of the Lenten Season.
4. Q) Why should I observe Lent? What purpose would it serve?
   A) It is a call to prepare for Easter. During this period of serious reflection, you spend time in self-examination and spiritual redirection. It is a time for you to acknowledge your shortcomings and to seek forgiveness for where you have fallen in your faith. Lent offers you the opportunity to seek spiritual renewal through the practice of prayer and self-denial.

1. Q) Is the custom of giving up something for Lent mandatory?
2. A) No, it is not mandatory. However, it is very profitable. By denying ourselves something we enjoy, we discipline our wills so that we are not slaves to our pleasures. Just as indulging the pleasure of eating leads to physical flabbiness and, if this is great enough, an inability to perform in physically demanding situations, indulging in pleasure in general leads to spiritual flabbiness and, if this is great enough, an inability to perform in spiritual demanding situations, we when the demands of morality require us to sacrifice something pleasurable (such as sex before marriage or not within the confines of marriage) or endure hardship (such as being scorned or persecuted for the faith). By disciplining the will to refuse pleasures when they are not sinful, a habit is developed which allows the will to refuse pleasures when they are sinful. There are few better ways to keep one’s priorities straight than by periodically denying ourselves things of lesser priority to show us that they are not necessary and focus our attention on what is necessary. This denying of pleasure is not an end in itself. It is only a means to an end. By training ourselves to resist temptations when they are not sinful, we train ourselves to reject temptations when they are sinful. We also express our sorrow over having failed to resist sinful temptations in the past. The scripture calls us to offer up our bodies as a spiritual sacrifice to the Lord…

Romans 12:1-2 (RSV) I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

1 Peter 1: 22 (RSV) Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere love of the brethren, love one another earnestly from the heart.

1 Peter 2: 4-5 (RSV) “Come to him, to that living stone, rejected by men but in God’s sight chosen and precious; and like living stones be yourselves built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

Colossians 1:24 (RSV) “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church.”

1. Q) How can I apply it to my life?
   A) Lent is usually observed by practicing some sort of self-denial. Some people skip a meal a day and give the money they would have spent on the meal to a needy individual or group. Whether it be giving up sweets, television, eating out or smoking, usually it is something that we don’t need but do or use habitually, something that will leave a “hole” in our lives. When we give up something for Lent, it is a reminder that we miss it and repent.” We can use the experience of our “desire” for what we gave up as a way to remind us that we often use things other than God to fill our emptiness.
2. Q) What is Ash Wednesday?
   A) Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Lenten Season.
3. Q) How is Ash Wednesday observed by the church?
   A) There are several traditions, but the most widespread observance is by using ashes (often from the burned palm leaves of the previous year’s Palm Sunday celebration) to mark the forehead of a believer with the sign of a cross.
4. Q) Why ashes?
   A) The people of the Old Testament used ashes as a sign of mourning (Esther 4:1-3, Job 42:6, Jeremiah 6:26). Even today, ashes are considered a symbol of death and of nothingness. Ashes remind us of our helplessness and dependence on God. They remind us of our need to mourn our sinful nature, to feel contrition, and to repent so that we may receive God’s forgiveness. They are a symbol of sinfulness and of our commitment to spiritual renewal. The ashes tell the world that we are sinners. But they are in the sign of the cross, so we are sinners who have hope in JESUS.
5. Q) Why are ashes put on the forehead?
   A) The Old Testament tells us that ashes were placed on people’s foreheads during times of fasting, prayer, repentance and remorse (2 Samuel 13:19).
6. Q) Do I have to get marked with the ashes?
   A) No. It is a matter of personal choice.
7. Q) Do I have to leave the ashes on?
   A) No. You may wipe them off whenever you like. Some Christian traditions encourage letting the ashes “wear off” on their own, as a public confession of your sinful nature and your remorse. But for some this can be socially uncomfortable, and for others it can be a source of unholy pride. You do what you feel led to do.
8. Q) Why observe Ash Wednesday?
   A) It’s an opportunity to gather with fellow believers to publicly acknowledge our sinful nature and to commit ourselves to a period of serious spiritual reflection.
9. Q) I heard that Mardi Gras has something to do with Lent. How can that be?
   A) Mardi Gras means “Fat Tuesday” in French. For those who fasted by severely restricting their diets, the Tuesday before the Beginning of Lent was the last chance to “eat-up” until Easter. They celebrated with food in a big way. The secular world has seized upon this day as an excuse to “party hardy” . . . much like the commercialization of Christmas, Halloween and Easter.

Summary: The Season of Lent begins with the ashes that represent our sinfulness and death, and ends before Holy Thursday Mass of the ‘Last Supper.’ Then we enter the ‘Holy Triduum’ which is Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday. All of this prepares us for Easter Sunday, where, through Christ, God resurrects us and makes us new creatures. We recognize our absolute dependence on God, who breathes the Spirit into us so that we may gain eternal life.

The Bible Is Clear

God Takes 40 Days to Prepare People for His Purposes?

Lent is a time for Catholics to live out their faith more intensely with a vision to access God’s power through prayer, fasting, and peaceful vigils to end abortion & other evils in America. Lent is a time for the body of Christ to come together around the world in a spirit of unity with the purpose of repentance, conversion and to seek God’s favor to turn hearts and minds from a culture of death to a culture of life.

God has used the period of 40 days throughout history to bring about major transformation…

• Noah experienced transformation during 40 days of rain (Genesis 7:4-18).
• Moses was transformed by 40 days of prayer on Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:18 & 34:28).
• David was transformed by Goliath’s 40 days of challenging the Israelites to fight (1 Samuel 17:16-36).
• Elijah was transformed when God gave him food & drink to strengthen him to walk for 40 days to Mt Sinai (1 Kings 19:5-8).
• Jonah transformed a wicked city Ninevah (in Assyria) when he preached that the Lord was giving them 40 days to repent & be faithful (Jonah 3).
• Jesus was transformed and empowered by 40 days of prayer in the dessert (Matt 4:1-11).
• The Disciples were transformed after spending 40 days with Jesus following His resurrection (Acts 1:3-9).

Whether the penance is voluntary or imposed by life circumstance, it does help us prepare for the rejoicing of Easter Sunday. By experiencing our mortality, we learn that we, like our Savior, must pass through death. On a monastery in Italy is carved the words, “The darker the night, the more brightly shine the stars.” Ash Wednesday is the yearly entrance to that dark night of Lent and it prepares us for the brightness of Easter. In more recent years, the ministers are allowed the option of placing the ashes on the penitent with the phrase, “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel” (Mk 1:15). This is a noble phrase, indeed. But I think that most of us who receive the ashes will be thinking of the words that have reverberated throughout the centuries: “Remember, man, you are dust, and to dust you will return” (cf. Genesis 3:19).

* If you pray well you will live well, if you live well you will die well, if you die well all will be well” (St Augustine).

WHY THE ASHES by Jesse Romero

Brothers and sisters in Christ. How many of you have been asked by people at work, in the neighborhood, or in the supermarket, “Why did you get ashes?” “What’s that on your forehead?” or “You got a stain on your forehead.”  As Catholics, we hear all those comments during Ash Wednesday. 

And many people just look at us as if we’re Martians from outer space. I want to give you reasons for this faith and let you know the biblical basis for why we as Catholics receive ashes on our foreheads.

Firstly, Ash Wednesday marks the first day of Lent, which is a 40-day practice in the Catholic Church. It’s a time for reflection, repentance and renewal and throughout the season, Catholics are attempting to imitate the Lord Jesus Christ as He gives us the example of 40-days of fasting and prayer in Matthew 4:1-11 

The Holy Spirit led the Lord Jesus Christ into the desert so that the Devil could test Him. Jesus went without eating for 40 days and nights, and he was very hungry, but he did this to inaugurate his public ministry.

Reminds me of a story I once heard regarding Lent. One cold evening in March, the rectory telephone rang, and an excited voice said,

“Father, this is Bill. Grandpa’s dying. Get over here.”

And since Grandpa lived just about a block away from the rectory. Father decided to walk over there. So Father bundled himself up, pulling his overcoat around his neck. And as he turned the corner, a figure stepped out from a building with a gun in his hand. And this bandit said

“Give me your money and be quick about it.”

Well, the priest’s opened his overcoat to reach for his wallet in the inside pocket. And with that, the robber exclaimed as he caught sight of his Roman collar. 

“Oh, excuse me, Father, I didn’t know you were a Catholic priest.”

 Well, relieved and grateful, but still nervous, the priest replied, 

“He-he- Here, have a cigar.” 

And waving his hand, the robber responded.

“Oh, no, thanks, Father, I gave up smoking for Lent.”

The moral to the story is that penance is an important thing during Lent, but keeping God’s laws is much more important. 

So, in a nutshell, Ash Wednesday is a custom, which is the first day of the Lenten fast, and the name Day of Ashes is in Latin “dies cinerum”, which it bears in the Roman Missal is found in the earliest existing copies of the Gregorian Sacramentary and probably dates from at least the eighth century. On this day at Dies Cinerum or the day of Ashes, all the faithful, according to ancient custom, are exhorted to approach the altar before the beginning of Holy Mass, and there the priest dips his thumb into the ashes. Previously blessed marks the forehead, or in case of clerics upon the place of the torture of each, the sign of the cross, saying the words 

“Remember man, that thou are dust and into dust, Thou shall return.”

That, by the way, is found in the book of Genesis 1:19, or the priest has the option of saying the other prayer, which is found in Mark 1:15 

“Repent and believe in the Gospel.”

 Basically, Ash Wednesday reminds us once again of our duties as Catholic Christians. It reminds us of our high calling in the imitation of Jesus Christ, which of course the Lord Jesus Christ gave us the first Ash Wednesday. In fact, I think this is an important point to make regarding Ash Wednesday. Saint Teresa of Avila, she knew about both the constellations and the dryness in the Christian life because she experienced them in her own prayer life. In the book Interior Castle, she stated that, 

“Even the highest contemplative graces are given to souls only in order to enable them to carry the cross. Those favors are given to us to strengthen our weakness so that we may be able to imitate the Lord and His great sufferings.”

And Jesus tells us in the Gospels that we must deny ourselves, take up our cross each day, and follow in His footsteps, striving to imitate His virtues and applying this to our everyday life. This means that we must first try to grow in detachment, personal sacrifice, self-denial and acceptance of any cross, even suffering, that the Lord permits to be placed upon our shoulders. On the other hand, satisfying our pride and self-love and clinging to our own will can deprive us of the inspirations of the Holy Spirit and become obstacles to the action of the Holy Spirit in our souls. As Catholics, we practice this 40 days of fasting and penance and additional prayer. We’re trying to grow in the invitation of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
The Catholic Dictionary says, “there can be no doubt that the custom of distributing ashes to all the faithful arose from a devotional imitation of the practice observed in the case of public penitence. But this devotional usage, the reception of a sacramental which is full of the symbolism of penance, is of earlier date than was formally supposed. It is mentioned as a general observance for both clerics and faithful in the Synod of Beneventum in 1091 A.D. but nearly 100 years earlier than this, the Anglo-Saxon apologist Alphrick assumes that it applies to all classes of men. We read, 

“In the books, both in the old law and in the new, that the men who repented of their sins be strew themselves with ashes and clothed their bodies with sackcloth. Now, let us do this little at the beginning of our lent that we strew ashes upon our heads to signify that we ought to repent of our sins during our Lenten fast.”

And then he had forces. This recommendation by the terrible example of a man who refused to go to church for the ashes on Ash Wednesday and who a few days after, was accidentally killed in a boar hunt. And this is found in the lives of the saints. Page 262 through 266. It is possible that the notion of penance, which was suggested by the right of Ash Wednesday, was reinforced by the figurative exclusion from the sacred mystery symbolized by the hanging of the Lenten veil before the sanctuary. But on this and the practice of beginning the fast on Ash Wednesday is a reason why Catholics enter into the season called Lent.

Well, so why is Lent 40 days long? The reason is because 40 days is a traditional number of discipline, devotion and preparation in the Bible. Thus, we see the Prophet Moses, the greatest prophet of the Old Testament. He stayed on the mountain of God 40 days. The Bible tells us, is an Exodus. Chapter 24:18. And in Exodus 34:28, we also see that the spies were in the land for 40 days, sent by Joshua in Numbers 13:25. And we also see a sacred scripture that Elijah traveled 40 days before he reached the cave, where he had his vision in First Kings 19:8. Nineveh was also given 40 days to repent by God. What He sent Jonah, the Prophet, and Jonah 3:4, and most importantly, the Lord Jesus Christ. Prior to undertaking his ministry, Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness praying and fasting. That’s what in Matthew 4:2. And Catholics are simply imitating these Old Testament examples and imitating the Lord Jesus Christ on Ash Wednesday and during the season of Lent. And since Lent is a period of prayer and fasting, it is fitting for Catholic Christians to imitate the Lord, as the Bible says, with a 40 day period. The Lord Jesus Christ used a 40 day period of prayer and fasting to prepare for his ministry, which culminated in his death and resurrection. And thus it is fitting for Christians to imitate him with the 40 day period of prayer and fasting to prepare for the celebration of his ministries climax, which is Good Friday, the day of the crucifixion and Easter Sunday, the day of the Resurrection, the hope of the ages. The Catechism says in paragraph 544 “We have not a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tested as we are yet without sinning.” And that’s out of Hebrews 4:15. “By the solemn 40 days of Lent, the Church unites herself each year to the mystery of Jesus Christ in the desert” And the fact that we’re called to imitate Jesus Christ that’s found in the Bible in first Corinthians 11:1

“Be imitators of me as I am of Christ”. 

That’s also found in verse a Thessalonians 1:6. 

It also says in Ephesians 5:1, 

“Therefore be imitators of God as beloved children.”

 And so really, I want to get into what the whole biblical basis for Ashes is because people generally ask Catholics, What’s that on your forehead? The liturgical use of ashes for Ash Wednesday. It originates in the Old Testament times. Ashes for the Jewish people symbolized mourning, mortality, and penance.

For instance, in the Book of Esther, Mordecai put on sackcloth and ashes. When he heard of the decree of King Hazardous or King Xerxes, who reigned from 454 to 464 B.C., he was the king of Persia and he called to kill all of the Jewish people in the Persian Empire. This is found in Esther 4:1. We also see the story of the Prophet Job, whose story was written between the seventh and the fifth centuries B.C. He repented in sackcloth and ashes, the Bible tells us in Jobe 45:6, And we also know that another prophet prophesying the Babylonian captivity of Jerusalem. The Prophet Daniel. Around 550 B.C., he wrote

“I turned to the Lord God, pleading in earnest prayer with fasting”.

Sackcloth and ashes. That’s found, by the way, in Daniel 9:3. And in the fifth century B.C., after Jonah’s preaching of conversion to the Ninavites rights, his preaching of conversion and repentance to the town of Nineveh, he proclaimed a fast and he put on sackcloth and the king covered himself with sackcloth and sat in the ashes as a sign of repentance. That’s found in Jonah 3:5-6 and so these Old Testament examples give us ample evidence of both a recognized practice of using ashes and a common understanding of this symbolism that we use today on Ash Wednesday. In fact, Jesus himself also made reference to ashes, referring to towns that refuse to repent of sin, although they had witnessed the miracles and heard the good news. Our Lord said, 

“If the miracles worked in you had taken place in tire incited, they would have reformed in sackcloth and ashes long ago.” 

That’s in Matthew 11:21. The Early Church continued the usage of ashes for the same symbolic reasons. For example, in his book State Penitentiary, Tertullian, the Christian writer who lived from 162 to 20 A.D., prescribed that the penitent must “live without joy and the roughness of sackcloth and the squalor of ashes,” 

We also know that Eusebius, who lived from 260 to 340 A.D., the famous early church historian, he recounted in his and is the History of the Church in his great work, the history of the Church, how an apostate name Nad+ came to Pope Joseph varieties clothed in sackcloth and ashes, begging forgiveness. Also, during this time, for those who were required to do public penance in the early church, the priests sprinkled ashes on the head of the person leaving confession. And in the Middle Ages, at least by the time of the eighth century, those who were about to die were laid on the ground on top of sackcloth, sprinkled with ashes, and the priest would bless the dying person with holy water, saying the words of Genesis 3:19, 

“Remember that thou are dust and to dust thou shall return”.

And after the sprinkling, the priests asked,

“Are thou content with sackcloth and ashes? In testimony of thy penance before the Lord and the day of judgment,” to which the dying person replied, “I am content”.

In all of these examples, the symbolism of mourning, mortality and penance is clear. Marking it with the sign of ashes. Eventually, the use of ashes was adapted to mark the beginning of Lent, which again, it is a 40 day preparation period, not including Sundays or Easter. The ritual for the day of ashes, as it’s called in Latin, is found in the earliest editions of the Gregorian Sacramentary which dates at least to the eighth century, about the year 1000, an Anglo Saxon priest named Alphrick preached, ”We read in the books both in the old law and in the new, that the men who repented of their sins bestrode themselves with ashes and clothed their bodies with sackcloth. Now, let us do this little at the beginning of our lent that we strew ashes upon our heads to signify that we ought to repent of our sins during the Lenten fast,” As an aside, this cleric Alphrick reinforced this point by then telling of a man who refused to go to church on Ash Wednesday and to receive the ashes. The man was killed a few days later in a boar hunt. I know it’s the second time I’ve mentioned the story, but it’s worth mentioning. It’s very it’s very significant. Since the Middle Ages, at least, the church has used ashes to mark the beginning of the penitential season of Lent. Again, that’s when we remember our mortality. And we mourn for our sins in our present liturgy. For Ash Wednesday, we used ashes made for the burned palm branches distributed on the Palm Sunday of the previous year. The priest blesses the ashes and imposes them on the foreheads of the faithful, making the sign of the cross and saying “Remember, man, you are doesn’t do, does you shall return” or “Turn away from this from sin and be faithful to the gospel”

And so, as Catholic Christians, when we begin this holy season of Lent in preparation for Easter, we must remember the significance of the Ashes we received on Ash Wednesday. We mourn and do penance for our sins. We again convert our hearts to the Lord who suffered, died and rose for our salvation. We renew the promises made at our baptism. And when we die to an old life and rose to a new life with Christ. Finally, mindful that the kingdom of this world passes away, we strive to live the Kingdom of God now and look forward to its fulfillment in Heaven. In essence, on Ash Wednesday, we remember that we are called to die to ourselves and rise to a new life in Christ, most especially marking that new life on Easter Sunday.

And so, as we remember the significance of the Ashes and strive to live it during this time of Lent, we must allow the Holy Spirit to move us to charity towards our neighbors. Our Holy Father, Pope John Paul. The second may rest in peace and his message for the Lent in 2003, he said,

”It is my fervent hope that believers will find this lent a favorable time for bearing witness of the gospel of charity in every place since the vocation to charity is the heart of all true evangelization”. 

John Paul II the Great also lamented that our age, regrettably, is particularly susceptible to the temptation towards selfishness, which always lurks within the human heart. An excessive desire for possession prevents human beings. The Pope says, “from being open to their creator and to their brothers and sisters”. This Lenten act of self-giving love shown to those in need must be part of our penance, conversion, and renewal, which starts on Ash Wednesday. Such acts constitute the solidarity and justice essential for building up the Kingdom of God in this world and for building up the civilization of love.