Sundays during Lent

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Perhaps this has been discussed in past years . . . do you continue to sacrifice on Sundays of Lent?

One the one hand, I’ve heard that Sundays are “little Easters” along the way, so it’s OK to celebrate. On the other, it doesn’t seem like much of a sacrifice if I only have to go 6 days and enjoy on the 7th. What do you all do? —KCT
 
Sunday is a feast day, the celebration of the Resurrection. It is not necessary to fast on this day. Lent is actually 46 days long for this very reason-- Sundays are skipped when counting the 40 days.
 
Of course, if you gave up swearing or heroin or something, it might be a good idea to keep on sacrificing, even on Sundays.
 
I practice my abstinance from whatever I give up on Sundays too. This is what I was taught in my youth and it just stuck with me. It’s only 6 additional days and for me it helps build character.
 
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dulcissima:
Of course, if you gave up swearing or heroin or something, it might be a good idea to keep on sacrificing, even on Sundays.
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I was considering coffee and soda 🙂 —KCT
 
I have found that it takes something away from the rigour of Lent to be able to indulge on the Sunday.

On the other hand I want to celebrate the Resurrection. So what I do is observe some part of my sacrifice throughout and indulge in some small way on a Sunday. Let say I give up all sweets, potato chips etc. and follow some kind of Fast or abstinence during Lent. Then I would not fast on the Sundays but still give up the other goodies.

Seems to strike the right balance for me.

Also to my mind this it is a bit like the omission of the Gloria, Organ and flowers during Sunday Mass. Eventhough it is a Sunday some change needs to be made.

Christopher
 
Personally, if you only give up something for 6 days and know that on the 7th day you can receive it, what is the big deal. We allow our children to sway a little on Sundays. For example, if they give up candy, then they are allowed one piece. If we give up TV, then we do not watch TV on Sundays. My husband and I are adults and we should be able to deny ourselves for lent. The purpose of Lent is to prepare us to become closer to God and this is one of our obligations!
 
chris ZA:
On the other hand I want to celebrate the Resurrection. So what I do is observe some part of my sacrifice throughout and indulge in some small way on a Sunday. Let say I give up all sweets, potato chips etc. and follow some kind of Fast or abstinence during Lent. Then I would not fast on the Sundays but still give up the other goodies.
I was considering something along those lines. If I give up coffee and soda, I might allow myself one cup of one or the other on Sundays.
—KCT
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Because of health reasons there isn’t much in the way of food I can give up, but even so, on Sundays I follow the Church and celebrate–I usually give up listening to TV and radio during the day, and since I am alone most of the day, it is a sacrifice for me). I find the Mass readings, penitential as they are during Lent, to be enough to remind me what season it is. 😉 I also like to do some extra spiritual reading, give more to charity, reach out more to someone in need, that sort of thing.
 
Our pastor who died a couple of years back used to encourage us to do something special during Lent instead of just giving up the same old things like favorite foods. Lots of people added a volunteer opportunity like working at the food bank to their sacrifice. For someone who wanted to continue their “sacrifice” on Sundays maybe that could be their day to do something additional instead of subtracting something?

I just checked the catechism and it says that Lent is only 40 days which would not include Sundays. I don’t think anyone should feel bad if they don’t continue their sacrifice in exactly the same manner on the Sundays of Lent. Last year I quit watching TV in the evenings after work which was one of my favorite things to relax, but on Sunday I watched the morning shows while getting ready for church and maybe 1-2 shows in the evening after I finished all of my activities at church. It was relaxing and it made Sunday stand out from the other days even more than if I just did my normal church activities.

I think it gets easier to not miss treats if you just don’t have any for a long period rather than if you have a little one occasionally that reminds you of what you are missing. Of course that is just my opinion. I would suggest to the OP to try doing it one way this year and differently next year and see what helps them to focus better on joining in Christ’s 40 days in the desert.
 
Growing up, my parents never acknowledged Sundays as a day to relax our sacrifices during Lent. In fact, the first time I ever heard about it was during a Mass when I was almost out of high school. I do respect that Sundays are a legitimate celebration, but because of the strict practices of my youth, I would personally feel wrong about the weekly lapse. Additionally, as has been mentioned a few times already, it just wouldn’t feel like a sacrifice to me if I indulged after only 6 days.
I feel like the changes I make during Lent are all things that better my mentality and health. I give up a lot of garbage that fills up daily life and alternately add healthy habits. To use Sundays as a day to embrace the “clutter” in my life would feel like a perversion of the celebration of Christ. Of course this only applies to my personal situation. For example, I have a short fuse sometimes, so that’s one thing I really try to focus on during Lent. Wouldn’t it be disgusting of me to use each holy Sunday as a day to allow myself to blow my top! Most people make sacrifices of certain types of food or drinks and, after all, Sunday is a feast day. So I have no ill opinions of those who do just that!
Christ be beside me in all that I do.
 
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