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What is Lent?

Lent is a 40-day Christian liturgical season (excluding Sundays) of fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. It symbolizes Jesus Christ’s 40 days in the wilderness and serves as a time of repentance, reflection, and spiritual preparation for Easter.

In 2026, Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, February 18 and ends before Easter on April 5.

Note: The word “Lent” comes from the Old English lencten, meaning “springtime”.

Key Aspects of Lent

• Duration: 40 days (from Ash Wednesday until the evening of Holy Thursday, or in some traditions until Holy Saturday).
• Purpose: To prepare spiritually for Easter, develop discipline, and imitate Jesus’ 40-day fast and temptation in the desert.
• Core Practices: Prayer • Fasting (often from meat or certain foods) • Almsgiving (charity and service to others).
• Prominent Symbol: Ashes placed on the forehead on Ash Wednesday, symbolizing repentance and mortality (“Remember you are dust…”).
• Common Personal Observance: Giving up something (a habit, luxury, or distraction) as a form of self-denial and spiritual focus.

In everyday English, “lent” is simply the past tense and past participle of the verb lend (“I lent her my book yesterday.”).

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