Lent
Lent is the period
of 40 days before Easter. It starts on Ash Wednesday and ends
on Easter Eve (sometimes called Easter Saturday). But if you
look in a calendar or diary and count the days they come to more
than 40! This is because you don't count the Sundays in Lent!
For Christians,
Lent is a time to prepare for Easter and to think about their
relationship with God. It represents the 40 days when Jesus was
tempted by the Devil in the desert. During this time he didn't
eat or drink anything. Because of this, some Christians give
up some food or 'fast' for Lent. For some people this is giving
up all food and just drinking, but for others, they just give
up luxury food like chocolate or cream cakes! The Eastern Orthodox
Church sometimes calls Lent 'The Great Fast'.
During Lent
in Anglican churches, the altar is covered with a purple cloth.
Purple is traditionally a royal colour and having a purple cloth
on the altar helps people remember that Jesus is king and that
he died at Easter. There are no flowers or any other decorations
displayed in the church.
Lent started
as a time that people that were being baptised, (a way of showing
that you are a Christian). They would use Lent to prepare for
their baptism on Easter Sunday. Over the years it has turned
into a time of reflection and thought for all Christians.
In the U.K.,
Mothering Sunday is always on the middle Sunday of Lent. This
was a day when servants and maids could have the day off work
and go back and visit their families and especially their mothers.
Now it is when Mums traditionally get the day off housework and
have presents given to them.
The Last week
of Lent is called Holy Week and helps people to think even more
about the Easter Story.
Easter
Easter is a spring
festival that celebrates the central event of the Christian faith:
the resurrection of Christ three days after his death by crucifixion.
Easter is the oldest Christian holiday and the most important
day of the church year. All the Christian movable feasts and
the entire liturgical year of worship are arranged around Easter.
Easter Sunday
is preceded by the season of Lent, a 40-day period of fasting
and repentence culminating in Holy Week, and followed by a 50-day
Easter Season that stretches from Easter to Pentecost.
Pentecost
Pentecost (Whitsunday)
is a major festival in the Christian church and is celebrated
on the Sunday which falls on the 50th day after Easter. It celebrates
the coming of the Holy Spirit in the form of flames to the followers
of Jesus, as recorded in the New Testament. Jesus had told them
to wait until the Spirit came to them. Ten days after ascension,
50 days after the resurrection, the Spirit came. The name Pentecost
comes from a Greek word which means 'fiftieth'.
The festival
is often called Pentecost because when the disciples received
the Holy Spirit and began to go out and preach about Jesus it
was the Jewish festival of Pentecost. It is recognised as the
birth of the Christian Church. The Apostle Peter preached a sermon
which resulted in 3,000 people becoming believers.
Whit Sunday
is a favourite day for baptism. It is thought that because people
are often baptised dressed in white, Whit Sunday was probably
originally known as 'White Sunday'. Whitsuntide is the week following
with Whitsunday, which is always the seventh sunday after Easter
Sunday.
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