Lent, a forty-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance, prepares Catholic Christians for the celebration of Easter. In this interview, Father Alphonse Diogoye Diouf, Vicar at the Sainte-Angèle Foundation in Kounoune, reflects on the meaning and demands of this liturgical season, while emphasizing the importance of conversion, charity, and the spiritual practices that mark this essential period of the Christian faith.

Can you explain what Lent is and what its significance is in the Catholic faith?

Lent is the forty-day period (quadragesima) dedicated to preparing for Easter. It is a time for meditating on the Word, which fosters a deeper awareness of one's sins, calls for conversion, and instills confidence in divine mercy. In the Catholic faith, Lent signifies a spiritual struggle, a battle against our bad habits, a journey toward God. The Lenten season is fundamentally a time of effort, renunciation, and conversion.

The symbol of forty days in biblical tradition

Why does Lent last 40 days and what is the symbolic significance of this number? Which biblical verse illustrates this?

Lent is a period of training at the end of which we renew our baptismal vows after welcoming the newly baptized during the Easter Vigil. This training lasts 40 days. And the symbolism of the number 40 is not arbitrary. The Bible associates it with a period of waiting, humility, effort, penance, and struggle. But at its end come encounter, reward, and victory. As if to say that joy and peace are at the end of the trial, the commitment, and the endurance. There is always a happy event at the end that leads to a new state of being. Lent is structured according to the typology of the 40 days of Moses on Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:18), the 40 years of Israel in the desert (Numbers 14:33-34), and the 40 days of Jesus' fasting (Matthew 4:1-2). The number 40 represents a time of gestation, a time of maturity, a period of preparation before a major event or news, often marked by faith and divine intervention. It is a time that culminates in a new birth; the one that the resurrection of Christ gives us. The number 40 evokes, so to speak, the time necessary for the renewal of the heart.

What is the relationship between Lent and the preparation for Easter?

Lent, by definition, is a time of preparation for the celebration of Easter. If it needs to be said, Easter is the foundation and the fruitfulness of Christian life. Lent is the path toward the light, and Easter is the light itself. The season of Lent gives us the opportunity to prepare ourselves in a way pleasing to God for the celebration of our Lord's Passover.

What are the main rites or practices that Catholics should observe during Lent?

The principal rites of Lent include the offering of ashes, which primarily symbolizes human frailty, mourning, humiliation, and repentance. Ashes are a sign of penance and trust in God. They remind us of our human frailty; we are weak and limited. In other words, we are all sinners and we need God's mercy and forgiveness. The two formulas that accompany the rite of ashes tell us more: "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return," and "Repent and believe in the Gospel."

We can also mention the rite of scrutinies, where catechumens progress Sunday after Sunday through specific stages in order to receive baptism on Easter night. The celebration of the Stations of the Cross is a highly recommended rite during Lent. The rite of Penance also plays a significant role during this time.

The practices that Catholics should observe during Lent are: fasting, prayer, almsgiving, listening to the Word of God and frequenting the sacrament of reconciliation.

Charity and sharing: at the heart of the Christian approach

How do you encourage the faithful to incorporate charity and good works during Lent?

To better encourage the faithful to embrace charity and good works during Lent, it's important to remember that for us Christians, fasting is not a hunger strike. Rather, it's a true conversion of our actions and words. Lent is a favorable time when fraternal sharing and the duty of social justice are lived out more authentically. If we fast, it's not to save money, but to deprive ourselves in order to share with others, especially those in need.

Why do we say that Catholics should not eat meat on Fridays during Lent?

According to the Code of Canon Law (cf. Canons 1250-1253), abstinence from meat is obligatory on Ash Wednesday, Fridays during Lent, and all other Fridays of the year, unless they coincide with a solemn feast. This obligation applies to all the faithful aged 14 and over. Therefore, we can conclude that the prohibition of meat on Fridays is a canonical provision established and dictated by the jurisdiction of the Church.

Thus, through fasting, prayer, penance and sharing, Lent appears as a privileged time for Catholic faithful to convert and renew their faith, preparing themselves spiritually to celebrate the resurrection of Christ at Easter.