Lent is the period of the year leading up to Easter.

The purpose of Lent is the preparation of Christians for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. Lent was also traditionally the term used to describe the period leading up to Christmas before the term of advent was officially recognized.

Lent is described as the forty days from Ash Wednesday to Easter. Sundays are not included in the 40 days because Sunday is the celebration of the Resurrection. The forty days represent the time that, according to the Bible, Jesus spent in the wilderness before the beginning of his public ministry, where he endured temptation by Satan.