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Sacrifice and love fall on the same day this year, as the season of Lent begins on Wednesday, Feb. 14, with Valentine's Day starting the solemn six-week period of fasting and penance. Lent begins Feb. 14 and runs through March 28 in 2024. According to britannica.com , the early Christian church observed Lent over a six-week period or 36 days with fasting except on Sundays. This year, Valentine’s Day and Ash Wednesday – the first day of Lent – fall on the same date. That’s a pretty unusual occurrence – it happened in 2018, and it happens this year, but the only other time it will happen between now the end of this century is in 2029. The start of the 2024 Lenten season, Ash Wednesday, actually fell on Valentine's Day Feb. 14, which is considerably early for the Christian religious holy day. In 2025 though, people who observe Shrove Tuesday, also known as Pancake Day, is the day before Lent begins, falling on Tuesday, March 4, 2025. This day is traditionally linked to Lent, as Christians use it to indulge in foods they Lent begins each year on Ash Wednesday, 46 days before Easter Sunday. This year, Lent will begin on Wednesday, March 5th, 2025. Lent consists of six weeks leading up to Easter and ends either on Maundy Thursday (April, 17th, 2025) or Holy Saturday (April 19th, 2025), depending on the denomination or tradition you follow. Why is Lent 40 days long? A. Lent is 40 days long because Jesus fasted in the wilderness 40 days and 40 nights before embarking on His public ministry. But He did not select the length of His fast at random. He was following biblical precedents—in several places in Scripture, we read about 40-day periods of penance or preparation. VaLENTines: Start of Lent on Feb. 14 puts indulgence, abstinence in conflict for some. Julia Gomez. "So, I think Valentine's Day can clarify what Ash Wednesday is really about, and Ash What Is the Meaning of Valentine's Day and Why Do We Celebrate It? does Lent start in future years?” here are a few upcoming dates: Lent 2026: Feb. 18; Lent 2027: Feb. 10; When does Lent end We answer questions about Lent 2025—the 40-day period observed by Christians ahead of Easter—including when Lent starts, what it signifies and how to celebrate. Valentine's Day. New Year's Starting Lent with Love. Secular Valentine’s Day is often over-commercialized with candy, flowers, and cards. Couples are encouraged to indulge in romantic dates and children’s classes are filled with Valentine’s Day cards and trinkets. It seems strange to start Lent with a day filled with such things, but maybe we’re looking at it all On Feb 14, Ash Wednesday-slash-Valentine's Day, you could also break out the champagne for International Book Giving Day, National Call in Single Day, National Cream-filled Chocolates Day Few folks today ever refer to Feb. 14 as Saint Valentine’s Day. One barometer of the sexualization of Valentine’s Day is that it has become the target period to release date the next “Fifty For some, this will be an inconvenient Lent. St. Valentine's Day, typically celebrated with sweets, falls a day after Lent begins.However, for Irish Americans who like corned beef and suds on St Patrick's Day, that holiday which often falls on a Friday, which is a day of abstinence, the get a reprieve this year. This Valentine’s Day will be made up of no extravagant gifts; my wife and I have decided to make Lent an extended Valentine’s Day of sacrifices for each other. RELATED: In Defense of the Lenten Sacrifice. Just like making time to sacrifice for my wife, this Lent I want to make the sacrifice of waking up 15 minutes earlier each day to pray. Since Valentine’s Day falls on the first day of Lent this year, one could even try to give up the standard practices of Valentine’s Day to reflect more on Jesus and spend time with Him. Whether you are married or not, you can use Valentine’s Day to spend some quality time with God in Bible reading and prayer. Both Lent and Valentine’s Day remind us of the significant truth that love involves sacrifice. On Ash Wednesday, many believers receive an ash cross on their foreheads, reminding them that they are dust, and to dust they will one day return (Genesis 3:19). So while this week’s timing—Lent begins with Ash Wednesday on February 13, the day before Valentine’s Day—is largely coincidental, these two holidays are joined in my thoughts as reminders Three years ago, for the first time since 1945, Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day fell on the same day. This year, Valentine’s Day falls on the last Sunday before Lent begins on Wednesday. If you’re an observant Catholic with a sweet tooth, you may be facing a dilemma. Lent — the 40-day holy period of fasting and praying observed by Christians — starts on St. Valentine’s Day
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