Lent
When Does Lent Start?
When does Lent start?
Lent - Definition of Lent
The definition of Lent.
When Is Lent?
Lent, the season of penance and prayer before Easter, changes every year. Find the dates of Lent.
When Does Lent End?
The day when Lent ends is the subject of much debate. When does Lent end?
How Are the 40 Days of Lent Calculated?
Lent, the period of prayer and fasting in preparation for Easter, is 40 days long, but there are 46 days between Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent in the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar, and Easter. How can that be?
Spiritual Reading for Lent
An excellent way to focus our thoughts and deepen our understanding of the meaning of Lent is to turn to the Bible. In the Office of the Readings, part of the Liturgy of the Hours, the official prayer of the Church, the Church has chosen scriptural passages that are appropriate to every day of the Lenten season.
Abstinence as Spiritual Discipline
What does abstinence mean? Why and when do Catholics abstain from meat? Learn more about the spiritual discipline of abstinence in the Catholic Church.
Fasting: A Powerful Spiritual Tool
What does fasting mean? Why and when do Catholics fast? Learn more about the spiritual discipline of fasting in the Catholic Church.
What Is Clean Monday?
Clean Monday is the first day of Great Lent for Eastern Catholics and Eastern Orthodox. Learn more about Clean Monday.
Shrove Tuesday
The definition of Shrove Tuesday.
Ash Wednesday in the Catholic Church
Most people know that Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent, the time of preparation before Easter. But how is it celebrated? And why do Catholics wear ashes on their foreheads on this day? Find out more about Ash Wednesday here.
When Is Ash Wednesday?
The date of Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, changes every year. Find the date of Ash Wednesday.
Is Ash Wednesday a Holy Day of Obligation?
Is Ash Wednesday a Holy Day of Obligation? Find out here!
Passiontide - Definition of Passiontide
The definition of Passiontide.
Holy Week - Definition of Holy Week
The definition of Holy Week.
Should Catholics Keep Their Ashes on All Day on Ash Wednesday?
When you receive ashes on Ash Wednesday, do you have to keep them on all day?
What Is Laetare Sunday?
Laetare Sunday is the popular name for the Fourth Sunday in Lent. Learn more about this important milestone in our Lenten journey.
When Is Laetare Sunday?
Laetare Sunday, the Fourth Sunday in Lent, falls on a different date each year. Find the date of Laetare Sunday for this and future years.
What Determines the Date of Ash Wednesday?
Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, falls on a different date each year. What determines the date of Ash Wednesday?
When Is Palm Sunday?
Palm Sunday, the final Sunday before Easter, falls on a different date each year. Find the date of Palm Sunday for this and future years.
Holy Thursday
Holy Thursday is the day that Christ celebrated the Last Supper with His disciples. Learn more about the history and practice of Holy Thursday.
How Is the Date of Ash Wednesday Calculated?
The first day of Lent, Ash Wednesday, falls on a different date each year. How is the date of Ash Wednesday calculated?
Is Holy Thursday a Holy Day of Obligation?
Is Holy Thursday a Holy Day of Obligation? Find out here!
When Is Good Friday?
Good Friday, the day on which Christians commemorate the death of Jesus Christ on the Cross, falls on a different date each year. Find the date of Good Friday.
Good Friday
Good Friday, the Friday before Easter, commemorates the death of Jesus Christ. Learn more about the history and rituals of Good Friday.
Is Good Friday a Holy Day of Obligation?
Is Good Friday a Holy Day of Obligation? Find out here!
When Is Holy Saturday?
Holy Saturday is the final day of the Triduum, the three days during which Christians commemorate Christ's Passion. When is Holy Saturday?
Catholic Liturgical Calendar for Lent 2011
Lent is a time of preparation for the death of Christ on Good Friday and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. Find a list of the dates of the Sundays and major feast days that fall in Lent 2011.
Catholic Liturgical Calendar for Lent 2012
Lent is a time of preparation for the death of Christ on Good Friday and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. The following is a list of the dates of the Sundays and major feast days that fall in Lent 2012.
Catholic Liturgical Calendar for Lent 2013
Find the dates of the Sundays and major feast days that fall in Lent 2013, as well as links to further information.
Catholic Calendar for Lent 2014
Lent is a time of preparation for the death of Christ on Good Friday and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. Find the dates of the Sundays and major feast days that fall in Lent 2014.
Catholic Calendar for Lent 2015
Lent is a time of preparation for the death of Christ on Good Friday and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. Find the dates of the Sundays and major feast days that fall in Lent 2015.
When Is Mardi Gras 2008?
Mardi Gras, also known as Fat Tuesday (Mardi Gras is French for "Fat Tuesday") or Shrove Tuesday, is the last day of feasting before Lent begins on Ash Wednesday.
When Is Holy Thursday?
Holy Thursday, the first day of the Triduum, falls on a different date each year. Find the date of Holy Thursday.
What Are You Giving Up for Lent 2013? - Lenten Sacrifices 2013
What are you giving up for Lent 2013? Share your sacrifice, and get ideas from other Catholics.
What Are You Giving Up for Lent 2012? - Lenten Sacrifices 2012
What are you giving up for Lent 2012? Share your sacrifice, and get ideas from other Catholics.
Catholic Liturgical Calendar for Lent 2008
Lent is a time of preparation for the death of Christ on Good Friday and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. The following is a list of the dates of the Sundays and major feast days that fall in Lent 2009.
Catholic Liturgical Calendar for Lent 2010
Lent is a time of preparation for the death of Christ on Good Friday and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. The following is a list of the dates of the Sundays and major feast days that fall in Lent 2010.
What Are You Giving Up for Lent 2011? - Lenten Sacrifices 2011
What Are You Giving Up for Lent 2011? - Lenten Sacrifices 2011
Message of His Holiness Benedict XVI for Lent 2008
Each year, the Holy Father releases a message at the beginning of Lent, to focus the thoughts of Catholics and to guide them during the Lenten season. Pope Benedict XVI's Lenten Message for 2008 is a reflection on 2 Corinthians 8,9: "Christ made Himself poor for you."