Lent begins in Houghton Regis

The holy season of Lent started on Ash Wednesday (22 February). On Ash Wednesday we welcomed the pupils and staff of Thomas’ Whitehead Academy to church for a special service where blessed Ashes were distributed. The other photos below were taken at the Parish Mass on Sunday 26 February, the First Sunday of Lent.

About the Season
Lent invites us to deeper repentance; to make meaningful changes in the way we live so that we may learn to follow the Lord Jesus more closely. To facilitate this Lenten repentance, we are invited to follow three core practices: Fasting, Giving, and Prayer. These should be hallmarks of the Christian life, but we are especially encouraged to engage with them now as we prepare to celebrate Easter.
The last two weeks of Lent (sometimes called Passiontide) assume darker tones as we approach Good Friday. During Passiontide sacred images are veiled so as to hide some of the glory and splendour of the church building and of the liturgy, and to focus our attention on the sorrowful Passion and Death of Our Lord.
The liturgical colours of Lent are purple, “Roman purple”, and violet to signify penitence. On the Fourth Sunday of Lent (Lætare Sunday) the liturgical colour is a cheerier rose.

​Photos: Thomas Whitehead Academy and Mr David Steele
Photo ​Copyright: Thomas Whitehead Academy and All Saints' PCC Houghton Regis