LENTEN: Jesus Has Risen!

         Lent is a month of penitential preparation for Easter in the Christian church. Lent is the six-week season (40 days excluding Sundays) preceding Easter, the most significant feast in the Christian calendar. Lent is frequently defined as a period of preparation and a chance to get closer to God. This implies it's a time for self-contemplation as individuals prepare their hearts and minds for Good Friday and Easter. Throughout Lent, prayer concentrates on the need for God's forgiveness. It is about repentance (turning from our sins) and accepting God's grace and love.

    Lent, also known as the Lenten season and Great Lent, is a way to recall Jesus' 40-day fasting and temptation in the wilderness. Lent is a forty-day liturgical season of fasting and prayer before Easter, but in today's world, the question is whether Lent has still been defined this way or whether it has evolved. Many Christian faiths celebrate Lent, a 40-day time of fasting and prayer, in the winter season. This is in preparation for Easter, a Christian event marking the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, which occurs in the springtime. The term "Lent" derives from Germanic origins that relate to the "lengthening" of days, or springtime. However, the details surrounding the religious observance's early origins are not as well known.

        Since I was little, I would put up items that were the easiest to give up, such as meals that I seldom ate. These lenten commitments had no value and were hardly a sacrifice. As we draw near to God over the next 40 days, we must remember what it is all about. We are preparing for Christ's final passion and crucifixion. This is an unrivaled act of self-sacrifice. As we start this Lenten season, we recall Jesus teaching his followers about almsgiving, prayer, and fasting.

    Generally speaking, while there are many practices and things that can be done to observe Lent, it is still important to understand its true essence and significance in our existence and faith as Catholics. The Lenten Season is not just a season for doing practices that depict Christ's sufferings, such as being nailed to the Cross, but it is also a season of restoration. The Lenten season allows us to see changes in our lives as Catholics while also becoming a change in the lives of others.

References:

Traditional Practices That You Can Witness During Lenten Season And Holy Week (March 30, 2017) by Philip Andrew Mayol Retrieved February 28, 2022, from https://cebufinest.com/traditional-practices-that-you-can-witness-during-lenten-season-and-holy-week/

When is Lent 2022? Everything You Need to Know About This Period of Preparation for Easter
(March 2, 2022) by Kelsey Pelzer Retrieved February 28, 2022, from https://parade.com/1146456/kelseypelzer/when-is-lent/

What are the origins of Lent? (February 27, 2021) Retrieved February 28, 2022, from https://www.rappler.com/world/global-affairs/what-are-the-origins-of-lent/

Retrieved February 28, 2022, from https://www.123rf.com/photo_118377716_good-friday-lent-season-and-holy-week-concept-a-religious-cross-a-bible-and-a-woven-crown-of-thorns-.html?vti=mghflmlmo1u1wun6zn-1-4