Concept in Definition ABC

The religious year for the Catholic Church has various stages and important moments that signify states of celebration, of reflection or tribute. One of the most important moments of the Catholic religious year is the time known as Lent, the time in which practitioners prepare for the Easter period that follows. Lent is the moment prior to that in which the most significant prophet and son of God, Jesus, is crucified and then rises eternally.

The name of Lent comes from the duration that has this period, which is usually forty days, from Ash Wednesday until the dinner of Holy Thursday, also known as the Last Supper. Its location in the calendar Western can vary from year to year, as does Easter. This number forty has special significance for Catholics as it symbolizes various moments in which the survival of the religion was put to the test, for example the 40 years in which the Jews marched for the desert escaping from Egypt, as well as the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert as a test of faith before dying and rising again.

For the most orthodox and practicing believers, Lent is not only a time of reflection and prayer (as the whole year is deep down), but also It is a period of penance and sorrow in which fasting is requested to demonstrate commitment and devotion to the one who was killed to cleanse our sins. In the present, the practice Fasting is less and less common among different religious communities for a just practical matter. However, believers are always invited to dedicate the forty-day period to reflect deeply on the sacrifice of Jesus on this Earth and of God by giving his only son to understand the importance of Christian devotion.