Lent

Since 1970, in the Roman Rite Lent starts on Ash Wednesday and ends on the evening of Holy Thursday with the Mass of the Lord's Supper. This comprises a period of 44 days. The Lenten fast excludes Sundays and continues through Good Friday and Holy Saturday, totaling 40 days (though the Eucharistic Fast still applies).[39][40] Although Lent formally ends on Holy Thursday, Lenten fasting practices continue until the Easter Vigil and additionally, the celebration of Easter is preceded by the Paschal fast.[17][41]

In the Ambrosian Rite, Lent begins on the Sunday that follows what is celebrated as Ash Wednesday in the rest of the Latin Catholic Church, and ends as in the Roman Rite, thus being of 40 days, counting the Sundays but not Holy Thursday. The day for beginning the Lenten fast in the Ambrosian Rite is the Monday after Ash Wednesday. The special Ash Wednesday fast is transferred to the first Friday of the Ambrosian Lent. Until this rite was revised by Saint Charles Borromeo, the liturgy of the First Sunday of Lent was festive, celebrated in white vestments with chanting of the Gloria in Excelsis and Alleluia, in line with the recommendation in Matthew 6:16, "When you fast, do not look gloomy."[42][43][44]

During Lent, the Church discourages marriages, but couples may marry if they forgo the special blessings of the Nuptial Mass and limit social celebrations.[45]

The period of Lent observed in the Eastern Catholic Churches corresponds to that in other churches of Eastern Christianity that have similar traditions.

In Western traditions, the liturgical colour of the season of Lent is purple. Altar crosses and religious statuary which show Christ in his glory are traditionally veiled during this period in the Christian year.

In Protestant and Western Orthodox Churches that celebrate it, the season of Lent lasts from Ash Wednesday to the evening of Holy Saturday.[19][46] This calculation makes Lent last 46 days if the 6 Sundays are included, but only 40 days if they are excluded.[47] This definition is still that of the Moravian Church,[48] Lutheran Church,[49] Anglican Church,[50] Methodist Church,[16] Western Rite Orthodox Church,[51] United Protestant Churches,[52] and those of the Reformed Churches (i.e., Continental Reformed, Presbyterian, and Congregationalist) that observe Lent.[53][54]

In the Byzantine Rite, i.e., the Eastern Orthodox Great Lent (Greek: Μεγάλη Τεσσαρακοστή or Μεγάλη Νηστεία, meaning "Great 40 Days" and "Great Fast" respectively) is the most important fasting season in the church year.[55]

The 40 days of Great Lent include Sundays, and begin on Clean Monday. The 40 days are immediately followed by what are considered distinct periods of fasting, Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday, which in turn are followed straightway by Holy Week. Great Lent is broken only after the Paschal (Easter) Divine Liturgy.

The Eastern Orthodox Church maintains the traditional Church's teaching on fasting. The rules for lenten fasting are the monastic rules. Fasting in the Orthodox Church is more than simply abstaining from certain foods. During the Great Lent Orthodox Faithful intensify their prayers and spiritual exercises, go to church services more often, study the Scriptures and the works of the Church Fathers in depth, limit their entertainment and spendings and focus on charity and good works.

Among the Oriental Orthodox, there are various local traditions regarding Lent. Those using the Alexandrian Rite, i.e., the Coptic Orthodox, Coptic Catholic, Ethiopian Orthodox, Ethiopian Catholic, Eritrean Orthodox, and Eritrean Catholic Churches, observe eight continuous weeks of fasting constituting three distinct consecutive fasting periods:

1. a Pre-Lenten fast in preparation for Great Lent
2. Great Lent itself
3. the Paschal fast during Holy Week which immediately follows Lent

As in the Eastern Orthodox Churches, the date of Easter is typically reckoned according to the Julian Calendar, and usually occurs later than Easter according to Gregorian Calendar used by Catholic and Protestant Churches.

In Ethiopian Orthodoxy, fasting (tsome) lasts for 55 continuous days before Easter (Fasika), although the fast is divided into three separate periods: Tsome Hirkal, the eight-day Fast of Heraclius, commemorating the fast requested by the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius before he reputedly set out to fight the Sassanian Empire and recover the True Cross which had been seized and taken from Jerusalem; Tsome Arba, 40 days of Lent; and Tsome Himamat, seven days commemorating Holy Week.[56][57][58] Fasting involves abstention from animal products (meat, dairy, and eggs), and refraining from eating or drinking before 3:00 pm.[56] Ethiopian devotees may also abstain from sexual activity and the consumption of alcohol.[56]

Quartodeciman Christians end the fast of Lent on the Paschal full moon of the Hebrew calendar, in order to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread beginning on the 14th of Nisan, whence the name derives. For this practice, they were excommunicated in the Easter controversy of the 2nd century A.D.

During the season of Shrovetide, it is customary for Christians to ponder what Lenten sacrifices they will make for Lent.[60] Another hallmark of Shrovetide is the opportunity for a last round of merrymaking associated with Carnival and Fastelavn before the start of the somber Lenten season. The traditions of carrying Shrovetide rods and consuming Shrovetide buns after attending church is celebrated.[61][62]

On the final day of the season, Shrove Tuesday, many traditional Christians, such as Lutherans, Anglicans, Methodists and Roman Catholics, "make a special point of self-examination, of considering what wrongs they need to repent, and what amendments of life or areas of spiritual growth they especially need to ask God's help in dealing with."[63][64] During Shrovetide, many churches place a basket in the narthex to collect the previous year's Holy Week palm branches that were blessed and distributed during the Palm Sunday liturgies; on Shrove Tuesday, churches burn these palms to make the ashes used during the services held on the very next day, Ash Wednesday.[65]

In historically Lutheran nations, Shrovetide is known as Fastelavn. After attending the Mass on Shrove Sunday, congregants enjoy Shrovetide buns (fastelavnsboller), "round sweet buns that are covered with icing and filled with cream and/or jam."[61] Children often dress up and collect money from people while singing.[61] They also practice the tradition of hitting a barrel, which represents fighting Satan; after doing this, children enjoy the sweets inside the barrel.[61] Lutheran Christians in these nations carry Shrovetide rods (fastelavnsris), which "branches decorated with sweets, little presents, etc., that are used to decorate the home or give to children."[61]

In English-speaking countries such as the United Kingdom and Canada, the day before Lent is known as Shrove Tuesday, which is derived from the word shrive, meaning "to administer the sacrament of confession to; to absolve."[66] In these countries, pancakes are associated with Shrove Tuesday because they are a way to use up rich foods such as eggs, milk, and sugar – rich foods which are not eaten during the season.[67]

Mardi Gras ("Fat Tuesday") refers to events of the Carnival celebration, beginning on or after the feast of Epiphany and culminating on the day before Lent.[68] The carnival celebrations which in many cultures traditionally precede Lent are seen as a last opportunity for excess before Lent begins. Some of the most famous are the Carnival of Barranquilla, the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the Carnival of Venice, Cologne Carnival, the New Orleans Mardi Gras, the Rio de Janeiro carnival, and the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival.

In stark contrast to traditions of merrymaking and feasting, Oriental Orthodox Churches practice a Pre-Lenten fast in preparation for Lent which is immediately followed by the fast of Great Lent without interruption.

Jesus Tempted in the Wilderness (Jésus tenté dans le désert), James Tissot, Brooklyn Museum

There are traditionally 40 days in Lent; these are marked by fasting, both from foods and festivities, and by other acts of penance. Fasting is maintained for all forty days of Lent (regardless of how they are enumerated; see above). Historically, fasting has been maintained continuously for the whole Lenten season, including Sundays. The making of a Lenten sacrifice, in which Christians give up a personal pleasure for the duration of 40 days, is a traditional practice during Lent.[69]

During Shrovetide and especially on Shrove Tuesday, the day before the start of the Lenten season, many Christians finalize their decision with respect to what Lenten sacrifices they will make for Lent.[60] Examples include practicing vegetarianism and teetotalism during Lent as a Lenten sacrifice.[70][71] While making a Lenten sacrifice, it is customary to pray for strength to keep it; many often wish others for doing so as well, e.g. "May God bless your Lenten sacrifice."[72] In addition, some believers add a regular spiritual discipline, to bring them closer to God, such as reading a Lenten daily devotional.[26]

For Lutherans, Moravians, Anglicans, Methodists, Roman Catholics, United Protestants, and Lent-observing Reformed Christians, the Lenten penitential season ends after the Easter Vigil Mass or Sunrise service. Orthodox Christians also break their fast after the Paschal Vigil, a service which starts around 11:00 pm on Holy Saturday, and which includes the Paschal celebration of the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. At the end of the service, the priest blesses cheese, eggs, flesh meats, and other items that the faithful have been abstaining from for the duration of Great Lent.

Lenten traditions and liturgical practices are less common, less binding, and sometimes non-existent among some liberal and progressive Christians.[73] A greater emphasis on anticipation of Easter Sunday is often encouraged more than the penitence of Lent or Holy Week.[74]

Some Christians as well as secular groups also interpret the Lenten fast in a positive tone, not as renunciation but as contributing to causes such as environmental stewardship and improvement of health.[75][76] Even some atheists find value in the Christian tradition and observe Lent.[77]

Historically, using the early Christian form known as the Black Fast, the observant does not consume food for a whole day until the evening, and at sunset, Christians traditionally break the Lenten fast of that day with supper (no food is consumed in a day apart from the Lenten supper).[78][79] In India and Pakistan, many Christians continue this practice of fasting until sunset on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, with many fasting in this manner throughout the whole season of Lent.[80][81]

Christians of various traditions, including Catholics and Methodists, have voluntarily undertaken the Daniel Fast during the season of Lent, in which one abstains from "meat, fish, egg, dairy products, chocolates, ice creams, sugar, sweets, wine or any alcoholic beverages" (cf. Daniel 10:3).[82][83][84]

After attending a worship service (often on Wednesday and Friday evenings), it is common for Christians of various denominations to conclude that day's Lenten fast together through a communal Lenten supper, which may be held in the church's parish hall. Lenten suppers ordinarily take place in the home setting during the forty days of Lent during which a family (or individual) concludes that day's fast after a mealtime prayer.[85]

Lenten suppers often consist of a vegetarian soup, bread, and water in order to maintain the season's focus on abstinence, sacrifice, and simplicity.

Fasting has historically included abstinence from wine, meat, and lacticinia (edible produce derived from animals including dairy products and eggs) which has been enjoined continuously for the whole duration of the season including Sundays.[86][32] Throughout Christendom, some adherents continue to mark the season with a traditional abstention from the consumption of meat, most notably among Lutherans, Roman Catholics, and Anglicans.[87][88] The form of abstention may vary depending on what is customary; some abstain from meat for 40 days, some do so only on Fridays, or some only on Good Friday itself.

In Roman Catholicism, lacticinia may be consumed by penitents in Spain and its colonised territories, per a pontifical decree of Pope Alexander VI. Until 1741, meat and lacticinia were otherwise forbidden for the whole season of Lent, including Sundays. In that year, Pope Benedict XIV allowed for the consumption of meat and lacticinia during certain fasting days of Lent.[89]

Abstinence from alcohol during the season of Lent has traditionally been enjoined "in remembrance of the Sacred Thirst of Our Lord on the Cross."[32][90][91]

Dispensations for the allowance of certain foods have been given throughout history, depending on the climate in that part of the world. For example, Giraldus Cambrensis, in his Itinerary of Archbishop Baldwin through Wales, reports that "in Germany and the arctic regions", "great and religious persons" eat the tail of beavers as "fish" because of its superficial resemblance to "both the taste and colour of fish." The animal was very abundant in Wales at the time.[92] Saint Thomas Aquinas allowed for the consumption of candy during Lent, because "sugared spices", such as comfits, were, in his opinion, digestive aids on par with medicine rather than food.[93]

Fasting practices are considerably relaxed in Western societies today, though in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Catholic, and Eastern Lutheran Churches abstinence from all animal products including eggs, fish, fowl, and milk is still commonly practiced, so that, where this is observed, only vegetarian (or vegan) meals are consumed for the whole of Lent, 48 days in the Byzantine Rite. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church's practices require a fasting period that is a great deal longer, and there is some dispute over whether fish consumption is permissible.

In the traditions of Lent-observing Western Christian churches, abstinence from eating some form of food (generally meat, but not dairy or fish products) is distinguished from fasting. In principle, abstinence is to be observed on Ash Wednesday and on every Friday of the year that is not a solemnity (a liturgical feast day of the highest rank); but in each country the episcopal conference can determine the form it is to take, perhaps replacing abstinence with other forms of penance.[94][95][96]

Through the Middle Ages, Christians abstained from sexual relations during the whole of Lent.[97] In view of this, nine months after Lent, birth records were drastically low due to believers abstaining from intimate relations during Lent.[98] In Spain, according to researchers from the University of Valencia and the University of Alcalà, the custom of abstaining from sexual relations was widely practiced until the end of the Franco régime, though some Christians voluntarily continue this practice today, and denominations such as the Eastern Orthodox Church continue to require abstinence from sexual relations during Lent.[99][100]

Prior to 1966, the Roman Catholic Church allowed Catholics of fasting age to eat only one full meal a day throughout all forty days of Lent, except on the Lord's Day. Catholics were allowed to take a smaller meal, called a collation, which was introduced after the 14th century A.D., and a cup of some beverage, accompanied by a little bread, in the morning.[101] The 1917 Code of Canon Law allowed the full meal on a fasting day to be taken at any hour and to be supplemented by two collations, with the quantity and the quality of the food to be determined by local custom. Abstinence from meat was to be observed on Ash Wednesday and on Fridays and Saturdays in Lent.[102]

The Lenten fast ended on Holy Saturday at noon. Only those aged 21 to 59 were obliged to fast. As with all ecclesiastical laws, particular difficulties, such as strenuous work or illness, excused one from observance, and a dispensation from the law could be granted by a bishop or parish priest.[103] A rule of thumb is that the two collations should not add up to the equivalent of another full meal. Rather portions were to be: "sufficient to sustain strength, but not sufficient to satisfy hunger."[104]

In 1966, Pope Paul VI reduced the obligatory fasting days from all forty days of Lent to Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, abstinence days to Fridays and Ash Wednesday, and allowed episcopal conferences to replace abstinence and fasting with other forms of penitence such as charity and piety, as declared and established in his apostolic constitution Paenitemini; fasting on all forty days of Lent is still "strongly recommended", though not under pain of mortal sin.[105] This was done so that those in countries where the standard of living is lower can replace fasting with prayer, but "…where economic well-being is greater, so much more will the witness of asceticism have to be given…"[106]

This was made part of the 1983 Code of Canon Law, which made obligatory fasting for those aged between 18 and 59, and abstinence for those aged 14 and upward.[94] The Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference decided to allow other forms of Friday penance to replace that of abstinence from meat, whether in Lent or outside Lent, suggesting alternatives such as abstaining from some other food, or from alcohol or smoking; making a special effort at participating in family prayer or in Mass; making the Stations of the Cross; or helping the poor, sick, old, or lonely.[107]

The Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales made a similar ruling in 1985[108] but decided in 2011 to restore the traditional year-round Friday abstinence from meat.[109] The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has maintained the rule of abstention from meat on Friday only during Lent and considers poultry to be a type of meat but not fish or shellfish.[110][111]

The Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen (CMRI), a Sedevacantist Roman Catholic congregation, requires fasting for its members on all of the forty days of the Christian season of repentance, Lent (except on the Lord's Day). The CMRI mandates under the pain of grave sin, abstinence from meat on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and all Fridays of the year in general.[112]

Even during Lent, the rule about solemnities holds, so that the obligation of Friday abstinence does not apply on 19 and 25 March when, as usually happens, the solemnities of Saint Joseph and the Annunciation are celebrated on those dates. The same applies to Saint Patrick's Day, which is a solemnity in the whole of Ireland as well as in dioceses that have Saint Patrick as their principal patron saint. In some other places, too, where there are strong Irish traditions within the Catholic community, a dispensation is granted for that day.[113] In Hong Kong, where Ash Wednesday often coincides with Chinese New Year celebrations, a dispensation is then granted from the laws of fast and abstinence, and the faithful are exhorted to use some other form of penance.[114]

Following the birth of Lutheranism in the Protestant Reformation, Lutheran church orders in the 16th century "retained the observation of the Lenten fast, and Lutherans have observed this season with a serene, earnest attitude."[5] Many Lutheran churches advocate fasting during Lent,[24][115] especially on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.[116][24][117][118] A Handbook for the Discipline of Lent published by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, a mainline Lutheran denomination, offers a number of guidelines for fasting, abstinence, and other forms of self-denial during Lent:[87]

1. Fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday with only one simple meal during the day, usually without meat.
2. Refrain from eating meat (bloody foods) on all Fridays in Lent, substituting fish for example.
3. Eliminate a food or food group for the entire season. Especially consider saving rich and fatty foods for Easter.
4. Consider not eating before receiving Communion in Lent.
5. Abstain from or limit a favorite activity (television, movies etc.) for the entire season, and spend more time in prayer, Bible study, and reading devotional material.
6. Don't just give up something that you have to give up for your doctor or diet anyway. Make your fast a voluntary self-denial (i.e. discipline) that you offer to God in prayer.[87]

The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, a confessional Lutheran denomination, likewise permits (but does not require) members to give things up for Lent, while emphasizing that the purpose of Lent is repentance from sin rather than minor acts of self-denial in themselves.[119][120]

Members of the Moravian Church voluntarily fast during the season of Lent, along with making a Lenten sacrifice for the season as a form of penitence.[121]

John Calvin, the principal figure in the development of Reformed theology, critiqued the practice of Lent in his Institutes of the Christian Religion as a "superstitious observance," and observed that "Christ did not fast repeatedly (which he must have done had he meant to lay down a law for an anniversary fast), but once only, when preparing for the promulgation of the gospel."[122] Similarly, leading Reformed divines such as Samuel Rutherford rejected the obligation of Lent.[123]

The Directory for Public Worship produced by the Westminster Assembly in 1644 and approved by the Scottish Parliament in 1645 takes the position that "[t]here is no day commanded in scripture to be kept holy under the gospel but the Lord’s day, which is the Christian Sabbath," and approves of fasting specifically "upon special emergent occasions" (cf. days of humiliation and thanksgiving).[124] Accordingly, and in keeping with the Reformed regulative principle of worship, the Reformed churches have historically not observed Lent.[125]

Some churches in the Reformed tradition observe Lent today.[23] For example, the Reformed Church in America, a Mainline Protestant denomination, describes the first day of Lent, Ash Wednesday, as a day "focused on prayer, fasting, and repentance," encouraging members to "observe a Holy Lent, by self-examination and penitence, by prayer and fasting, by practicing works of love, and by reading and reflecting on God's Holy Word."[126] Among Reformed Christians who do observe Lent, Good Friday, which is towards the end of the Lenten season, is an important day of communal fasting, as it is for many Episcopalians, Lutherans, and Methodists.[127]

In the Anglo-Catholic wing of the Anglican Communion, the Saint Augustine's Prayer Book, a companion to the Book of Common Prayer, states that fasting is "usually meaning not more than a light breakfast, one full meal, and one half meal, on the forty days of Lent."[88] It further states that "the major Fast Days of Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, as the American Prayer-Book indicates, are stricter in obligation, though not in observance, than the other Fast Days, and therefore should not be neglected except in cases of serious illness or other necessity of an absolute character."[128]

The historic Methodist homilies regarding the Sermon on the Mount stress the importance of the Lenten fast, which begins on Ash Wednesday.[129] The United Methodist Church therefore states that:

There is a strong biblical base for fasting, particularly during the 40 days of Lent leading to the celebration of Easter. Jesus, as part of his spiritual preparation, went into the wilderness and fasted 40 days and 40 nights, according to the Gospels.[130]

Good Friday, which is towards the end of the Lenten season, is traditionally an important day of communal fasting for Methodists.[127] Rev. Jacqui King, the minister of Nu Faith Community United Methodist Church in Houston explained the philosophy of fasting during Lent as "I'm not skipping a meal because in place of that meal I'm actually dining with God."[131]

The United Methodist Church teaches, in reference to one's Lenten sacrifice, that "On each Lord's Day in Lent, while Lenten fasts continue, the reverent spirit of Lent is tempered with joyful anticipation of the Resurrection."[132]

The season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, most notably by the public imposition of ashes. In this photograph, a woman receives a cross of ashes on Ash Wednesday outside an Anglican church.

A Lutheran pastor distributes ashes during the Divine Service on Ash Wednesday.

The number 40 has many Biblical references:

• Moses spent 40 days on Mount Sinai with God[133]
• Elijah spent 40 days and nights walking to Mount Horeb[134]
• God sent 40 days and nights of rain in the great flood of Noah[135]
• The Hebrew people wandered 40 years in the desert while traveling to the Promised Land[136]
• Jonah's prophecy of judgment gave 40 days to the city of Nineveh in which to repent or be destroyed[137]
• Jesus retreated into the wilderness, where He fasted for 40 days, and was tempted by the devil.[138] He overcame all three of Satan's temptations by citing scripture to the devil, at which point the devil left him, angels ministered to Jesus, and He began His ministry. Jesus further said that His disciples should fast "when the bridegroom shall be taken from them",[139] a reference to his Passion.
• It is the traditional belief that Jesus lay for 40 hours in the tomb,[43] which led to the 40 hours of total fasting that preceded the Easter celebration in the early Church[140] (the biblical reference to 'three days in the tomb' is understood by them as spanning three days, from Friday afternoon to early Sunday morning, rather than three 24-hour periods of time). Some Christian denominations, such as The Way International and Logos Apostolic Church of God,[141] as well as Anglican scholar E. W. Bullinger in The Companion Bible, believe Christ was in the grave for a total of 72 hours, reflecting the type of Jonah in the belly of the whale.[142]

One of the most important ceremonies at Easter is the baptism of the initiates on Easter Eve. The fast was initially undertaken by the catechumens to prepare them for the reception of this sacrament. Later, the period of fasting from Good Friday until Easter Day was extended to six days, to correspond with the six weeks of training necessary to give the final instruction to those converts who were to be baptized.

Converts to Christianity followed a strict catechumenate or period of instruction and discipline prior to receiving the sacrament of baptism, sometimes lasting up to three years.[143] In Jerusalem near the close of the fourth century, classes were held throughout Lent for three hours each day. With the legalization of Christianity (by the Edict of Milan) and its later imposition as the state religion of the Roman Empire, its character was endangered by the great influx of new members. In response, the Lenten fast and practices of self-renunciation were required annually of all Christians, both to show solidarity with the catechumens, and for their own spiritual benefit.

In addition to fasting and the Lenten sacrifice, the period of Lent is traditionally a time of almsgiving, when Christians are encouraged to donate the value of what they forego during Lent.

A common practice is the singing of the Stabat Mater hymn in designated groups. Among Filipino Roman Catholics, the recitation of the epic of Christ' passion, called Pasiong Mahal, is also observed. In many Christian countries, grand religious processions and cultural customs are observed,[144] such as the Stations of the Cross.[145] A custom of visiting seven churches during Holy Week to pray the Stations of the Cross and praying at each church, exists and has been done in an ecumenical context, involving Christians of the Catholic, Methodist, Episcopal and Salvationist traditions, among others.[146]

The Gloria in excelsis Deo, which is usually said or sung on Sundays at Mass (or Communion) of the Roman, Lutheran and Anglican rites, is omitted on the Sundays of Lent (as well as Sundays of Advent), but continues in use on solemnities and feasts and on special celebrations of a more solemn kind.[147][148] Some Mass compositions were written especially for Lent, such as Michael Haydn's Missa tempore Quadragesimae, without Gloria, in D minor, and for modest forces, only choir and organ. The Gloria is used on Maundy Thursday, to the accompaniment of bells, which then fall silent until the Gloria in excelsis of the Easter Vigil.[149]

The Lutheran Divine Service, the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, the Anglican Churches, and the Presbyterian service of worship associate the Alleluia with joy and omit it entirely throughout Lent,[150][151] not only at Mass but also in the canonical hours and outside the liturgy. The word "Alleluia" at the beginning and end of the Acclamation Before the Gospel at Mass is replaced by another phrase.

Before 1970, the omission began with Septuagesima, and the whole Acclamation was omitted and was replaced by a Tract; and in the Liturgy of the Hours the word "Alleluia", normally added to the Gloria Patri at the beginning of each Hour – now simply omitted during Lent – was replaced by the phrase Laus tibi, Domine, rex aeternae gloriae (Praise to you, O Lord, king of eternal glory).

Until the Ambrosian Rite was revised by Saint Charles Borromeo the liturgy of the First Sunday of Lent was festive, celebrated with chanting of the Gloria and Alleluia, in line with the recommendation in Matthew 6:16, "When you fast, do not look gloomy."[42][43][44]

In the Byzantine Rite, the Gloria (Great Doxology) continues to be used in its normal place in the Matins service, and the Alleluia appears all the more frequently, replacing "God is the Lord" at Matins.

A Methodist minister prostrates at the start of the Good Friday liturgy at Holy Family Church, in accordance with the rubrics in the Book of Worship. The processional cross is veiled in black, the liturgical colour associated with Good Friday in Methodist Churches.

Statues and icons veiled in violet shrouds for Passiontide in St Pancras Church, Ipswich, England

A crucifix on the high altar is veiled for Lent. Saint Martin's parish, Württemberg, Germany

In certain majority-Christian states, in which liturgical forms of Christianity predominate, religious objects were traditionally veiled for the entire 40 days of Lent. Though perhaps uncommon in the United States of America, this practice is consistently observed in Goa, Malta, Peru, the Philippines (the latter only for the entire duration of Holy Week, with the exception of processional images), and in the Spanish cities: Barcelona, Málaga, and Seville. In Ireland, before Vatican II, when impoverished rural Catholic convents and parishes could not afford purple fabrics, they resorted to either removing the statues altogether or, if too heavy or bothersome, turned the statues to face the wall. As is popular custom, the 14 Stations of the Cross plaques on the walls are not veiled.

Crosses were often adorned with jewels and gemstones, the form referred to as Crux Gemmata. To keep the faithful from adoring elaborately-ornamented crucifixes, churches began veiling them in purple fabrics. The violet colour later came to symbolize penance and mourning.

Further liturgical changes in modernity reduced such observances to the last week of Passiontide. In parishes that could afford only small quantities of violet fabrics, only the heads of the statues were veiled. If no violet fabrics could be afforded at all, then the religious statues and images were turned around facing the wall. Flowers were removed as a sign of solemn mourning.

In the pre-1992 Methodist liturgy and pre-1970 forms of the Roman Rite, the last two weeks of Lent are known as Passiontide, a period beginning on the Fifth Sunday in Lent, which in the 1962 edition of the Roman Missal is called the First Sunday in Passiontide and in earlier editions Passion Sunday. All statues (and in England paintings as well) in the church were traditionally veiled in violet. This was seen as in keeping with John 8:46–59, the Gospel of that Sunday, in which Jesus "hid himself" from the people.

Within many churches in the United States of America, after the Second Vatican Council, the need to veil statues or crosses became increasingly irrelevant and was deemed unnecessary by some diocesan bishops. As a result, the veils were removed at the singing of the Gloria in Excelsis Deo during the Easter Vigil. In 1970, the name "Passiontide" was dropped, although the last two weeks are markedly different from the rest of the season, and continuance of the tradition of veiling images is left to the discretion of a country's conference of bishops or even to individual parishes as pastors may wish.

On Good Friday, the Anglican, Lutheran, and Methodist churches traditionally veiled "all pictures, statutes, and the cross are covered in mourning black", while "the chancel and altar coverings are replaced with black, and altar candles are extinguished." The fabrics are then "replaced with white on sunrise on Easter Sunday."[152]

The chancel of a Lutheran church decorated with red paraments, the liturgical colour of the last week of Lent, Holy Week, in the Lutheran and Anglican Churches[153]

In the Lutheran, Methodist, Roman Catholic, and many Anglican churches, pastors and priests wear violet vestments during the season of Lent.[154][155] Roman Catholic priests wear white vestments on solemnity days for St. Joseph (March 19) and the Annunciation (March 25), although these solemnities are transferred to another date if they fall on a Sunday during Lent or at any time during Holy Week. On the fourth Sunday of Lent, rose-coloured (pink) vestments may be worn in lieu of violet. Historically, black was also used: Pope Innocent III declared black to be the proper color for Lent, though Durandus of Saint-Pourçain asserted violet was preferable to black.[156]

In some Anglican churches, a type of unbleached linen or muslin known as "Lenten array" is worn during the first three weeks of Lent, crimson is worn during Passiontide, and on holy days, the colour proper to the day is worn.[157] In certain other Anglican churches, as an alternative to violet for all of Lent except Holy Week and red beginning on Palm Sunday through Holy Saturday, Lenten array, typically made of sackcloth such as burlap and trimmed with crimson cloth, often velvet, is worn, even during Holy Week—since the sackcloth represents penance and the crimson edges represent the Passion of Christ. Even the veils that cover the altar crosses or crucifixes and statuary (if any) are made of the same sackcloth with the crimson trim.

In the Anglican, Lutheran, Old Catholic, Roman Catholic, and many other traditions, the Easter Triduum is a three-day event that begins Maundy Thursday evening, with the entrance hymn of the Mass of the Lord's Supper. After this celebration, the consecrated Hosts are taken solemnly from the altar to a place of reposition, where the faithful are invited to meditate in the presence of the consecrated Hosts.This is the Church's response to Jesus' question to the disciples sleeping in the Garden of Gethsemane, "Could you not watch with me one hour?" On the next day, the liturgical commemoration of the Passion of Jesus Christ is celebrated at 3 pm, unless a later time is chosen due to work schedules.

This service consists of readings from the Scriptures, especially John the Evangelist's account of the Passion of Jesus, followed by prayers, veneration of the cross of Jesus, and a communion service at which the hosts consecrated at the evening Mass of the day before are distributed. The Easter Vigil during the night between Holy Saturday afternoon and Easter Sunday morning starts with the blessing of a fire and a special candle, and with readings from Scripture associated with baptism. Then, the Gloria in Excelsis Deo is sung, water is blessed, baptism and confirmation of adults may take place, the people are invited to renew the promises of their own baptism, and finally, Mass is celebrated in the usual way from the Preparation of the Gifts onwards.

Holy Week and the season of Lent, depending on denomination and local custom, end with Easter Vigil at sundown on Holy Saturday or on the morning of Easter Sunday. It is custom for some churches to hold sunrise services which include open air celebrations in some places.