Our Roman Catholic, and Anglican neighbors along with a few others are celebration their Lenten season. If you wonder just what all of this means, I offer the following information. The term "Lent" derives from the Old English "lenckten" which means "spring." It is forty days of fasting before the celebration of Easter in those churches. It is supposed to be a time of penance wherein communicants abstain from festivities, and give themselves to alms-giving and more than usual time to religious exercises.  Thus many churches have special services during these days. Until 1966 Catholics were expected to fast during lent, but that rule has been  lifted. The idea of fasting was derived from the fact that Jesus fasted forty days in the wilderness. It is noteworthy that the Bible is utterly silent about Christians observing a forty day fast prior to Easter. In fact it is silent about the observation of an Easter holy day. This practice was unknown to Christians of the first three centuries.  The Catholic Encyclopedia states that "Irenaeus about the year 190 knew nothing of any Easter fast of forty day" (Vol. 9, p. 152). The earliest mention of the forty days in the Canons of Nicea, (325 A.D.), although the practice was not fully developed in the Roman church until the 7th century (Ibid.). While some devout souls may have truly fasted during this period of penance, most of us have known folks who gave up "butter, or sugar, or smoking, or liquor or some similar thing" as their fasting for the forty days. Even in the beginning of the practice, practitioners ate one meal per day, a vegetarian diet for the duration.

Because it is not authorized by Christ (Matt. 28:20); Because it is a human tradition devised by men and imposed on worshipers (Matt. 15:6-9); Because Christ no where commands us to fast for religious purposes; Because Paul warns against the observance of special days, months, seasons and years (Gal. 4:10-11); Because we are not to add to the word of God (Prov. 30:6) we do not observe the religious season of Lent.  We are however to confess our sins and ask forgiveness on a regular basis (Matt. 6:12; Jas. 5:16).  We are to be truly sorry for our sins. We are to daily remember that Jesus died for us on the cross and was resurrected.  Each week we remember this in our Lord's Day assembly and the Lord's Supper. Let us be happy and content with being simply Bible Christians, nothing more nor less.