With about two weeks to the end of the Lenten season, Women’s Editor, TEMITOPE OJO, chronicles how the different denominations observe this season.
The word ‘Lent’ itself is derived from the Anglo-Saxon words lencten, meaning ‘Spring’, and lenctentid, which literally means not only ‘Springtide’, but also was the word for March, the month in which the majority of Lent period falls. During Lent, longer days (and shorter nights) are observed; hence reports that the word has something to do with ‘length’ should not be discarded.
While fasting goes with Lent naturally in some Churches, others consider this form of self-denial a personal matter.
It’s easy to find examples of fasting in both the Old and New Testaments. In Old Testament times, fasting was observed to express grief. Starting in the New Testament, fasting took on a different meaning, as a way to focus on God and prayer.
Such a focus was Jesus Christ’s intent during his 40-day fast in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-2). In preparation for his public ministry, Jesus intensified his prayer with the addition of fasting.
Today, many Churches associate Lent with Moses’ 40 days on the mountain with God, the 40-year journey of the Israelites in the desert, and Christ’s 40-day period of fasting and temptation. Lent is a period of sober self-examination and atonement in preparation for Easter.
The Lenten season begins on Ash Wednesday and goes through Holy Thursday before Easter. It is to be 40 days of fasting, prayer, purging and renewal of our hearts towards God. The 40 days are fulfilled over the six weeks from Ash Wednesday to Easter. Sundays are considered days of grace, so the fasting is from Monday through Saturday. With the six weeks excluding Sundays, Good Friday and Holy Saturday, you have your 40 days.
The Bible does not mention the custom of Lent. However, the practice of repentance and mourning in ashes is found in 2 Samuel 13:19, Esther 4:1, Job 2:8, Daniel 9:3 and Matthew 11:21.
Lent is mostly observed by the Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian and Anglican denominations. Some new generation churches also partake in this tradition.
In the Catholic Church
The Catholic Church has a long tradition of fasting and Lent. Unlike most other churches, the Catholic Church is liberal about fasting and abstinence. It also has specific regulations for its members concerning Lenten fasting.
Not only do Catholics fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, but they also abstain from meat on those days (and, for some, all the Fridays during Lent). However, fasting does not mean complete rejection of food.
On fast days, Catholics are allowed to eat one full meal and two smaller meals which, together, do not constitute a full meal. Young children, the elderly, and persons whose health would be affected are exempt from fasting regulations. Savings from the skipped meals are given to the needy.
Fasting is associated with prayer and alms-giving as spiritual disciplines to take a person’s attachment away from the world and focus it on God and Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. It is also a time to deprive themselves of “something good”.
Pope Francis, in his annual Lenten message, asked the Catholic fateful to reconsider their heart during this Lenten season. According to the pontiff, fasting must never become superficial. “No act of virtue can be great if it is not followed by advantage for others. So, no matter how much time you spend fasting, no matter how much you sleep on a hard floor and eat ashes and sigh continually, if you do no good to others, you do nothing great,” he added.
But this isn’t to downplay the role of sacrifice during the Lenten season. Lent is a good time for penance and self-denial. But once again, Francis reminds us that these activities must truly enrich others: “I distrust a charity that costs nothing and does not hurt.”
So, if we’re going to fast from anything this Lent, Francis suggests that even more than candy or alcohol, we fast from indifference towards others.
His words: “Indifference to our neighbour and to God also represents a real temptation for us Christians. Each year during Lent, we need to hear once more the voice of the prophets who cry out and trouble our conscience.”
Describing this phenomenon he calls the globalisation of indifference, Francis writes that “whenever our interior life becomes caught up in its own interests and concerns, there is no longer room for others, no place for the poor. God’s voice is no longer heard, the quiet joy of his love is no longer felt, and the desire to do good fades.
“We end up being incapable of feeling compassion at the outcry of the poor, weeping for other people’s pain, and feeling a need to help them, as though all this were someone else’s responsibility and not our own.”
In Protestant churches
Most Protestant churches do not have regulations on fasting and Lent. During the Reformation, many practices that might have been considered “works” were eliminated by reformers, Martin Luther and John Calvin, so as not to confuse believers who were being taught salvation by grace alone.
In the Episcopal Church, members are encouraged to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Fasting is also to be combined with prayer and alms-giving.
The Presbyterian Church makes fasting voluntary. Its purpose is to develop dependence on God, prepare the believer to face temptation, and to seek wisdom and guidance from God.
The Methodist Church has no official guidelines on fasting, but encourages it as a private matter. John Wesley, one of the founders of Methodism, fasted twice a week. Fasting or abstaining from such activities as watching television, eating favourite foods, or doing hobbies is also encouraged during Lent.
The Baptist Church encourages fasting as a way to draw closer to God, but considers it a private matter and has no set days when members should fast.
The Assemblies of God Church considers fasting an important practice, but purely voluntary and private. The church stresses that it does not produce merit or favour from God, but is a way to heighten focus and gain self-control.
The Lutheran Church encourages fasting, but imposes no requirements on its members to fast during Lent.
Celestial Church
The doctrine of the Celestial Church of Christ (CCC) does not mandate the faithful to observe the 40-day Lenten season. Rather, the last seven days of the season known as Passion Week, for all the members, pregnant or sick, is compulsory for fasting.
According to Prophet Tunji Solaja of CCC, Isokan Ifemimo Sowapo Parish, Bariga, Lagos, the sick and pregnant women are only asked to drink water in the morning and can break the fast by noon or 3pm.
“Within these seven days, each parish prepares food for all members who must attend service, and they all break the fast together.
It is not only food that members must stay off from. “Husband and wife must also abstain from sex during the Passion Week,” Solaja said.
Pentecostals
In most Pentecostal churches, the Lenten celebration is a wonderful spiritual preparation for Easter. However, most do not observe the 40 days of fasting because they believe it has degenerated into a carnal form of religion with no power or spiritual purpose at all.