Lent is a season of forty days, not counting Sundays (because each Sunday represents a "mini-Easter"), which begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Saturday (the day before Easter). The forty days represents the time Jesus spent in the wilderness, enduring the temptation of Satan and preparing to begin his ministry. Lent is a time of repentance, self-examination and reflection, and preparation for the coming of Easter. In the early church, Lent began as a period of fasting and preparation for baptism by new converts and then became a time of penance by all Christians. Today, Christians focus on relationship with God, growing as disciples and extending ourselves, often choosing to give up something or to take on an activity to focus on our relationship with God - we may choose to praise and worship the Lord, to read the Bible more, and to pray more often.

Ash Wednesday developed in early medieval times as a day of penitence to mark the beginning of Lent. The ashes are from the burned palm branches of last year’s Palm Sunday and imposed on the forehead, are a reminder of our mortality, that we are created “out of the dust of the earth” and that it is only by God’s grace that we are given everlasting life.

Holy Week is the week prior to Easter Sunday that begins with Palm Sunday and includes Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.



Easter Sunday is the day we celebrate the Risen Christ! We celebrate the good news that in Christ’s death and resurrection we, and all creation, are continually being made new by God’s love and saving grace.