I used to be(or am) protestant and I don’t remember ever having to celebrate lent. I think it’s strictly a Catholic thing.
And I’m trying to find where Christians were bashed…unless you mean the “giving up Jesus” thing which didn’t seem particulary offensive to me.
I thought that other Christian groups do distribute ashes on Ash Wednesday, and call the season from after Mardi Gras until Easter “Lent”. Not sure about other practices (fasting, abstinence, sacrifice, extra offerings) as part of the season though.
Accoriding to this.
Either I went to the wrong churches(Luthern, Baptist) or I just didn’t notice(which could be, as I haven’t stepped inside a church in nearly a decade).
I don’t remember ever being asked to fast or give up something by the church, or ever seeing my parents do it.
Though apparently Orthodox Chrisitians also observe lent.
A lot of Anglicans and some Lutheran observe Lent, too. A Mennonite friend has been telling me that they don’t observe Lent because they’re already all perfect. :rolleyes:
Every year we get a bunch of red-hot comedians in with the typical “I gave up Christianity/Jesus/Catholicism/religion for Lent!” lines. It’s not bashing, it’s just irritating and unfunny.
I’m not sure “celebrate” is the right word. 
“Observe,” maybe.
Roman Catholics, High-church Episcopalians/Anglicans, the various Orthodox churches… Did I miss any? Some of the more liturgical Lutherans, maybe?
Well we had a slightly different start to Lent at this morning’s Ash Wednesday mass when the church’s fire alarm was triggered and the fire brigade arrived in the middle of it all. Lots of “ash” jokes ensued.
I’ve decided to be original this year. Instead of giving up food or something, I’m going to give up underwear. 
Some people find it rather hard to respect a person who has such nonsensical beliefs. I think you might have more credibility with me if you said you believed in elves.
I can’t imagine my Sundays being better spent by spending time in a building that has a phallic symbol pointing skyward. I sleep in and no one judges me or condemns me for it.
For the sake of it, if there were a god, I don’t think he’d give a toss where you were on Sunday, or any day. Surely content of character and behaviour are far more important?
I’m not a big fan of religion either, but I don’t see the problem with people believing what they want and observing that in their own way.
It’s only when people try to insist other people have to do the same or browbeating others for their difference of belief when I get irritated. And frankly, you’ve just put yourself in that catagory.
Well, that didn’t belong in this thread.
My atheist mom works at a Catholic hospital so she gets asked a lot what she’s giving up for Lent by well meaning folks just looking for conversation. She usually says, with a straight face, “sarcasm”. Most people don’t get it, but one woman just looked at her and said “oh honey, you’d explode!”.
My aunt gives up iced tea every year, and every year almost makes it.
I’m not a Christian, but I always found the tradition of observing Lent fascinating.
Feel free to be irritated, we all have that right. I simply refuse to tolerant of intolerance … which is quite a conundrum in itself. It seemed like that person wanted an explanation, so I gave mine.
I think it’s an interesting holiday, as much as I find the month of ramadan interesting. However, I was simply responding to that fellows post. My opinion on lent is of no great signifigance.
Same here…which is why I condemn atheists as much as christians who do it. I don’t recall anyone saying in this thread that people who don’t observe lent are going to hell, so your “Christians are delusional” spiel is out of line(even if he did, it would still be out of line, but then I’d be condeming both of you).
[Moderator Underoos On]Your posts in this thread are off-topic(for reference, please scroll to the top of this page and read the title) and belong in The BBQ Pit, not IMHO. Knock it off.[/Moderator Underoos On]
I am giving up TV (cable people are coming and takeing away the box). I am **going to ** (not try but going to) attend Mass every day. I am going to try to be more kind (gentle, winsome) to people.
This is a poll, for those who are religious. Or for those who are not to say “nothing”. This is not a debate or a pitting. Please keep that in mind when you post.
radleyas, please acquaint yourself with which forums are appropriate for which kinds of posts. IMHO is not appropriate for the posts you have made in this thread.
I suppose I could have finished reading the thread first.
I wasn’t trying to be funny actually. Then again I wasn’t exactly accurate because I can’t remember exactly when I stopped practicing at being Catholic, so it might not have been at Lent.
It was a poll and I was stating that I no longer practice that belief. I wasn’t bashing the belief or anyone who still practices that belief. To me this was like a poll asking if you prefer boxers or briefs and someone coming in to post that they prefer neither. Okay, that wasn’t the option in the OP but it was still an option.
When I was practicing at being Catholic I always attempted to give up candy or desserts and I was never successful. Lent was always a lot like New Years Resolutions.
Though apparently Orthodox Chrisitians also observe lent.
We do. And as for “giving things up” our list of things we are supposed to give up is pretty impressive. Easter for us is a week later than western Easter this year, so we’re a little later starting than the West. This past Sunday was Meatfare Sunday, which is the last time we’re allowed to eat meat until Pascha (our name for Easter). This coming Sunday is Cheesefare Sunday, the last time we’re allowed dairy until Pascha. We’re also supposed to attend as many of the additional services (the first full week of Lent at my church has one every morning and every evening) as we can make. In 5 years of being Orthodox, I have yet to make it through Lent without breaking the fasting rules at least a dozen times.
On the topic of Christ’s death being a substitute for ours, that’s a completely Western notion. The Eastern Church (Orthodox) teaches that Christ came to restore the connection between God and Man. But that can be a long and involved discussion that requires more than my basic understanding of the topic to really explain well.
Arianne