How to Calculate the Dates of Lent

During Lent, which is the forty days before Easter, many Christians follow Christ's example of withdrawing into the wilderness for forty days. Lent is a time of repentance and spiritual dedication through prayer and fasting. All churches with a history dating back before A.D. 1500 observe Lent.

Instructions

1. Find Easter on your calendar and count backwards 40 days. If you are celebrating Lent in the Western Church, you will need to skip Sundays because they represent the resurrection of Jesus and so are not used in this calculation. You should end up on Ash Wednesday.

2. Count seven Wednesdays before Easter. This is another way to find Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent for the Western Church.

3. Calculate Clean Monday. Count backwards 40 days from Easter without skipping Sundays. The Eastern Church includes Sundays in their calculation of the length of Lent, bringing you to the seventh Monday before Easter, Clean Monday.

4. Ask your pastor or other religious leader. She will have a calendar with the religious celebrations clearly given. This may be the easiest way to determine the dates of Lent.

5. Go online. If you're having difficulty finding a date for Lent that makes sense, go to your computer and search for Lent. You will end up with several sites that give the dates for whatever year you wish. You also have the option to pick Eastern or Western and a list of special holidays are given with their dates.