February promises longer days and the first glimmers of spring, but its arrival also heralds the approach of Lent on 2 March. Ash Wednesday doesn’t always fall in this month – it can be as late as 10 March – but it is never too far off once we have left January behind.
With Lent on the horizon, we start to reflect on fasting, almsgiving and asceticism. The normal rigours of the penitential season will be familiar to many of us, but there are those who are already well into an even stricter and more demanding devotion known as Exodus 90. This is a sort of extended Lent, lasting for the 90 days before Easter instead of 46. This year, from 17 January until Easter Sunday, the men taking part forsake (among other things) hot showers, TV, snacks, alcohol and secular music. The aims are manifold: to foster detachment from worldly pleasures, to develop self-mastery and prayerful dedication to God, and to build fellowship with other Catholics attempting the same feat.
