![]() You may have heard it called Fat Thursday or Tłusty Czwartek (pronounced Twoosti Chvartek). White cloths are now used to cover religious objects in those churches that practice this ritual, and the other customs of the somber Lenten season give way to the joyous mood of Easter.A most popular Polish-American tradition is celebrated on Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. Lent culminates two days later with the arrival of Easter Sunday, commemorating Jesus’ resurrection. Black cloths may be used to cover religious objects in a church on this day, and some Christians fast by eating only one substantial meal on this day. Because of parallels between the Last Supper - described as a Passover meal in the Gospels - and the Jewish Seder meal held on the first night of Passover, some Christian churches now hold meals that have adopted rituals from the Seder in commemoration.įriday is known as Good Friday (in 2022 on April 15), which recalls Jesus’ crucifixion. Coverings of religious objects in churches may be changed from purple cloths to white cloths for this day. The following Thursday is known in English as Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday (in 2022 on April 14), and it commemorates the Last Supper, or the final meal Jesus shared with his disciples. In many churches, congregants are given palms to carry in a procession. It begins on Palm Sunday (in 2022 on April 10), the day that commemorates Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, in which the path traveled was strewn with palm branches, according to the Gospel. The final week of Lent in Western Christianity is known as Holy Week. Watch Video: Praying the Steps on Good Friday Holy Week: Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter In many communities, gathering at a church for a fried fish meal on Friday evening is a popular Lenten activity. Since fish was not considered to be meat for the purposes of Lent, this led to the tradition of churches holding a “fish fry” on Fridays during Lent. Traditionally, that meant that meat was not eaten on Fridays during Lent. The Lenten period is understood by Christians as a time for reflection and penitence, and abstaining from certain foods or activities is often undertaken. Some Christians follow the custom of not washing the ashes off the forehead until the end of the day. The custom of placing ashes on the forehead is not considered a sacrament but is often accompanied by a blessing and an admonition to remember one’s mortality. There is also a custom for churches to make the ashes for Ash Wednesday by burning the palm leaves used on the previous year’s Palm Sunday. ![]() ![]() In some churches, ashes are smeared onto the forehead in the sign of a cross, but a variety of customs exist. The first day of Lent is known as Ash Wednesday. The day before Lent, as the last day of indulgence until Easter, took on a festival atmosphere and came to be known in French as Mardi Gras (which literally means “Fat Tuesday”) or in other languages as Carnival, from a medieval Latin phrase meaning “taking away the meat.” ![]() In the Middle Ages, fasting during Lent often meant that only one small meal a day was eaten, and that meal did not contain any animal products. Mardi Gras, Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent In many languages, the word for Lent is based on the word for 40 in Latin or Greek, and in some Germanic and Slavic languages, the name is taken from the word for fasting, which was traditionally the primary observance of this season. The word “Lent” is based on an Old English word that meant “springtime,” because Lent leads into spring.
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