Lenten Key Dates & Holy Week

​Shrove / Fat Tuesday / Mardi Gras

• One of the great riches of the Catholic tradition is the way the year is marked with various days of feasting and fasting. One such feast day is Fat Tuesday (from French Mardi Gras), also called Shrove Tuesday, the day preceding Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. On a practical note, it is a day to get rid of all the fats, meats, and desserts from your home before the Lenten fast begins. But on a spiritual note, Fat Tuesday is a day to rejoice in God’s abundance and generosity to us. So have an extra goody this Fat Tuesday, but when you do, give thanks to God for His goodness.
  
  

Ash Wednesday

• Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a 40-day journey of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving in preparation for Easter. It is a day of fasting and abstinence, reminding us of our need for repentance and our dependence on God. As we receive ashes on our foreheads, we are called to turn back to Him with open hearts.
  
  Fasting and Abstinence Requirements
  Catholics aged 18 to 59 are required to fast, meaning they may eat one full meal and two smaller meals that together do not equal a full meal, with no snacks in between. Catholics aged 14 and older must abstain from meat. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 1434) teaches, fasting is an expression of interior penance, helping us detach from worldly comforts and rely more on God.
  
  

Laetare Sunday

• The Fourth Sunday of Lent, called Laetare (Rejoice) from the first word of the Entrance Chant (Isaiah 66:10). It is a day where the more rigorous lenten practices are temporarily lifted, since it marks being past the half-way point of the Lenten Journey; we are now closer to Easter than we are to the beginning of Lent. Priests may wear rose (pink) coloured vestments as a sign of increased solemnity and joy. Keen listeners will note that the prescribed Entrance Chant’s melody resembles the Easter Vigil’s Alleluia, musically prefiguring the Easter Joy that is now so near.
  
  

Palm Sunday

• The Sunday before Easter is celebrated in a particularly solemn way, typically with the blessing of palm branches, processions and special music. Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem where He is hailed as the Son of David, the Messiah. While certainly a joyous occasion, the Gospel for this day, St. Mark’s Passion, reminds us that Jesus enters Jerusalem ultimately to die on the Cross.
  
  

Holy Week

• As its name suggests, this is the holiest week of the year. Throughout this week, we journey with Christ through the profound events of His Passion, Death, and Resurrection. 
  
  

Paschal Triduum

• Holy Thursday marks the celebration of the Last Supper and the Institution of the Eucharist
• Good Friday marks the solemn remembrance of Jesus’ crucifixion and death.
  Fasting and abstinence requirements on Good Friday: Catholics aged 18 to 59 are required to fast, meaning they may eat one full meal and two smaller meals that together do not equal a full meal, with no snacks in between. Catholics aged 14 and older must abstain from meat. 
• Holy Saturday is a somber, silent, and strange day when the order of the universe is turned upside down. God is dead. The earth is gripped by a deep silence. It is the only day of the year where the Eucharist is not distributed.  ​

Easter Sunday
Christ is Risen from the dead, glorify Him!

Eastern Sunday is the holiest day of the Christian year, the cornerstone of the Christian faith, the definitive centre of all of history. This day marks the victory of life over death and the fulfillment of God’s promise of salvation. This day is the culmination of the Paschal Mystery, bringing joy and hope as Jesus Christ opens the way to eternal life.