The Law of the Church for Lent
1. Abstinence. All persons, 14 years and older, are obliged to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and all Fridays of Lent.
2. Fasting. Everyone from ages 18 to 59 is obliged to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Fasting is generally understood to mean that one full meal may be eaten. Two other small meals (collations) may be eaten, but together they should not equal a full meal. Eating between meals is not permitted.
The more traditional fast
Please note that, traditionally, those who reasonably could not fast on the appointed days, especially the sick, those engaged in heavy labor for their wages, and pregnant women, were always excused from fasting. The faithful should also take care to moderate fasting in the event of any health considerations that arise from it.
That being said, we highly encourage the observance of the traditional discipline of Lent, which would mean daily fasting and abstinence from meat from Ash Wednesday until after None (3 pm) on the Vigil of Easter. Fasting, but not abstinence from meat, would traditionally be relaxed on Sundays.
The return of this discipline seems to be spreading. Recently, I watched a video by the Norbertines encouraging a return to the more traditional observance of Lent. Likewise, the priest suggested a truly communal observance of Lent by the family. This is something that the priests observe in the rectory: leading up to Lent we discuss what sacrifices we are going to observe in common. Typically, this includes: fasting outside of Sundays and abstinence from meat for the whole of Lent, but also giving up desserts and alcohol. For families, this might look like: fasting and abstinence for adults, abstaining from snacks for children, and giving up sweets (and – for the adults – alcohol). There might also be a common abstinence from electronics at certain hours (e.g., after dinner). If you want to walk the full conference, it is available here:
