Which season is a forty-day season of preparation leading up to Holy Week, marked by purple?

• A. Advent
• B. Christmas
• C. Lent
• D. Ordinary Time

Answer: (C)

Lent is the forty-day season of preparation before Holy Week. It’s a time for fasting, prayer, and almsgiving as believers ready themselves for Easter, and the color purple is used to symbolize penance and humility during this period. Lent begins with Ash Wednesday and runs through Holy Saturday, with Sundays not counted toward the forty days, which is why the span is described as forty days rather than forty calendar days. Advent looks forward to Christmas and can use purple or pink, Ordinary Time is marked by green and isn’t a preparatory season, and Christmas is the celebration after Advent. Because Lent specifically matches the idea of a forty-day prep leading up to Holy Week and uses purple, it’s the best fit.