For example, if I gave up chocolate for lent, could I eat it on Sundays during lent? I have heard from more than one person that the things that you give up you can do on Sundays in lent?
Yes, you can eat the chocolate on Sundays...that's why Lent starts on a Wednesday -- so we can deduct Sundays because Sundays are never Lent. Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week...from there all Sundays are thus blessed and are called the Lord's Day...they are mini-Easters. On the other hand, because Jesus died on a Friday, this is why we fast on a Friday -- and by the way, the Catholic teaching is that we should make some act of penance every Friday year round -- not just during Lent. It's not really enforced any more -- but it hasn't been dropped, either. In fact we are supposed to also fast on Wednesdays (the day Judas went to the chief priests and offered to betray Jesus to them). In Jesus' day, the Jews fasted on Mondays and Thursdays...the two days outside of Shabbat that the Torah was read from. This is why Jesus had said, "When you fast..." (see MT 6:16) -- not "If you'd like to fast..." It was a given that fasting was done from ancient days.
Check out the fasting requirements on fasting in the Orthodox Church...they are far more strict that the Catholic Church: note that they still fast every Wednesday and Friday year round. http://home.wavecable.com/~photios/fasti…
http://www.antiochian.org/fasting-great-…
While we Catholics fast for < 10 days/year, the Coptic Orthodox church fasts for more than 200 days per year!!!!!
Check out the fasting requirements on fasting in the Orthodox Church...they are far more strict that the Catholic Church: note that they still fast every Wednesday and Friday year round. http://home.wavecable.com/~photios/fasti…
http://www.antiochian.org/fasting-great-…
While we Catholics fast for < 10 days/year, the Coptic Orthodox church fasts for more than 200 days per year!!!!!
