By cheating, I mean are followers allowed to temporarily abstain from their fast?
2007-02-21 05:18:42 · 12 answers · asked by philz4jc 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Catholics are REQUIRED to, without medical excuse, participate in all fasts and lenten abstentions. However, Lent is 40 days between ash wednesday and Easter Sunday. You'll notice there are 46 calendar days in that time frame, that is because, as you pointed out, sundays do not count towards the lenten period.
Why? Sundays are days of holy obligation which are also feast days. Rubrics demand that Christians of Good conscience celebrate sundays without any call to fasting or abstention. Thus, while you are ALLOWED to take part in whatever you gave up on sundays, you may choose not to do so.
For example, I recently started smoking again (six months ago). I decided to give it up for lent and quit for good, so you can bet sure as shooting that I'm not going to be smoking on sundays just because I'm allowed to.
2007-02-21 11:10:09 · answer #1 · answered by promethius9594 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Sundays are days of celebration and not of penitential practices.
There are 40 days in Lent.
However if you count the number of days from Ash Wednesday to Holy Saturday (the day before Easter) you find there are 46 days.
The extra days are 6 Sundays. These Sundays are not really part of Lent. So if you give up chocolate for Lent you can eat it on Sundays.
If you give up something more important like sarcasm or endeavor to do some good work then I suggest you keep up the effort on Lenten Sundays.
With love in Christ.
2007-02-22 17:06:27 · answer #2 · answered by imacatholic2 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
technically, yes. Most do not cheat because whatever they have given up is generally not all that good for them to start with.
We do not fast all of Lent. We Fast and abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday and we abstain from meat on all of the Fridays of Lent. The other days we just follow our own personal offering of penance. It doesn't necessarily have to be a diet restriction item.
2007-02-21 05:27:38 · answer #3 · answered by Midge 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Sunday's are counted. They are "the first Sunday of Lent", "the second Sunday of Lent" and so on...
No, you cannot cheat. But you CAN remember the Reason for Lent.
To grow closer to God.
2007-02-21 05:22:38 · answer #4 · answered by azarus_again 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Most of the Catholics I know cheat. Oh man; they really cheat, if you catch my meaning.As far as food, I have seen some of the leadership eating Bar-B-Q. Let me tell you, a fish don't go oink.
2007-02-22 21:17:06 · answer #5 · answered by Pope Benedict XVI 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I think it does. But many Catholics don't do Lent anymore or much less fast. I'm Catholic and I don't do Lent or fast just as nobody I know does and they're Catholics. I think we're lapsed Catholics.
2007-02-21 07:08:32 · answer #6 · answered by cynical 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Yes, you can partake in the things you have given up for Lent on Sundays. Sundays are a joyous and sacred day in which we remember jesus' resurrection and conquering of death.
At first, it sounds like cheating, but then realize that on Monday, you have to give up that guilty pleasure again.
Sookie - think about what your comment says about YOUR way of life. Thanks fro sharing that with us.
2007-02-21 05:23:08 · answer #7 · answered by Sldgman 7 · 1⤊ 3⤋
No cheating here.
Sunday is a day of rest, Remember?
It's a day of rest even fasting.
2007-02-23 03:51:15 · answer #8 · answered by Daver 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
My wife says we can cheat. So I went out and had an affair!
2007-02-23 01:47:51 · answer #9 · answered by bpgveg14 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yep, the fast is off on Sundays.
2007-02-21 05:33:26 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋