Testiculese wrote:Is Lent so you can sin the rest of the year without guilt? Interesting concept. Out of 365 days, I don't think another 40 matter too much.
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Not at all. Lent's supposed to be a time of self-reflection and penitence, a time when we take a good, long look at ourselves and what prevents us from having a perfect relationship with God. There's absolutely no requirement that one has to give up some type of food or pleasurable activity (don't read too much into that
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) for Lent; it's just something that a lot of people choose to do. It could just as easily be something proactive; for example, instead of buying coffee and a donut every morning, take the money you would have spent and donate it to charity, instead. You could also make a commitment to try to improve your relationships for those around you. The point isn't about the physical act of giving something up; it's about the sense of putting aside something extraneous to concentrate on what really matters.
Catholics have a few other food irregularities regarding Lent; we can't eat meat or poultry on Fridays (fish is fine), as a sign of reverance with regards to Good Friday, and on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, we're required to eat only one full meal. Those requirements are rooted in more ancient traditions of fasting as a sign of penitence, as is the practice of receiving ashes on Ash Wednesday. (Fun fact: the ashes that Catholics are given on Ash Wednesday are actually the remains of the palms that were distributed last Palm Sunday, for anyone who didn't know. It provides a sort of connection from the end of one Lent to the start of the next.) The food requirements have actually been toned down; there was a time when Catholics couldn't eat meat on any Friday of the year, and the fasting requirement applied to every Friday during Lent. Once again, it's not really the physical act that's of main import, but rather what it symbolizes as a sign of penitence and self-sacrifice.