Lent does not include Sundays. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lent

Quick answer: Sunday is not included in the 40 days of lent.

Sundays are considered "mini Easters" during Lent. So, yes, you have a free pass for that day.
At least for Catholics. I can't speak how other religions view Sundays.

I wasn't allowed to cheat on Sundays growing up, but have friends who did and said it was okay.

As a Catholic, some years I've given myself a Sunday break or used it as an excuse if it got tough to go without coffee/chocolate/wine, but I try not to.

Anonymous wrote:for me, it was easier getting through the week if I knew I could have some ice-cream on Sunday's

My kid, who is 7, was twitching. He gave up his favorite computer game.
I think there is a detox factor (joking) but I told him you can make it 40 days.

He asked which day we were on, so I did a countdown to Easter yesterday, which was about 25 days away. Hmmm....It has been more than 2 weeks...
so I found out about the Sundays, which are added in.
This season, it feels longer.

I decided to cave and let him play on Sunday, but I may limit the time. (40 minutes?)

The theology supports a break on Sunday.

As a person who stinks at giving stuff up (sugar, soda, coffee...what have you) I would prefer not to do the stop/start thing.

for me, it was easier getting through the week if I knew I could have some ice-cream on Sunday's

It's easier for me to continue the fast rather than revisiting my temptations on Sundays.

OP, just because some people do it doesn't mean you have to!

I learned about the no fast on Sunday practice from my father, who was born early in the last century in the Midwest, where he was raised. So no--not an East coast modern thing.

I am Catholic and have never heard this. Can't wait to ask my priest about it!

OP here. Well, my kids and DCUM have taught me something!

Hmm. I have to let this settle on me. You'd think I'd be thrilled that I get to "cheat" and it's not cheating…but it's a bit of a shock because I'm so old and you'd think I would have heard about this by now. I've always thought the older I get the less I know, but that was usually in regards to how people work, not about a particular fact or rule.

And this finally explains to me why Lent was always said to be 40 days but was always over 40 days.

So…It's 9:46pm, and while there's still time, I have some chips hiding in the pantry that I think I'll go hunt down! : D

I asked a priest friend who sent me an article. It said,

"From the very earliest days, the Church has declared that Sunday, the day of Christ's Resurrection, is always a feast day, and therefore fasting is forbidden. Since there are six Sundays within Lent, we have to subtract them from the days of fasting. Forty-six minus six is forty.

That's why, in the West, Lent starts on Ash Wednesday--to allow a full 40 days of fasting before Easter Sunday.

Unlike earlier generations of Christians, most of us don't actually fast every day during Lent, in the sense of reducing the amount of food we eat and not eating between meals. Still, when we give something up for Lent, that's a form of fasting. Therefore, that cannot be binding on the Sundays within Lent.

Does that mean that you should go out of your way on Sundays to indulge in whatever you gave up for Lent? Of course not. But in the same manner, you should not actively avoid it (assuming that it is something good that you've deprived yourself of, rather than something that you shouldn't do or consume anyway). To do so would be fasting, and that's forbidden on Sundays--even during Lent."

From Ask a Franciscan:

Are Sundays Part of Lent?

Q: Last year my Catholic co-workers and I disagreed over whether Sundays are considered part of Lent. Each year I give up sweets for Lent, but I have always understood that I could eat them on Sundays during Lent. Some of my co-workers disagree. With Lent starting soon, I would like to know who is right on this issue.

A: Technically, Sundays are not part of Lent. Although we celebrate them liturgically as part of Lent, the Lord's Day cannot be a day of fast and abstinence. Six weeks of Monday through Saturday gives you 36 days. If you add to them Ash Wednesday and the three days after it, you get the 40 days of Lent.

Some people may find it easier to "give up" something for the entire time between Ash Wednesday and Easter, but you are correct in saying that Sundays are not part of the 40 days.

It's an Episcopalian thing.

Anonymous wrote:I have heard this from many people but we never did it in my Midwest hometown. I think the logic behind it is that each Sunday is a mini Easter and if you add the number of days in Lent minus the Sundays, it equals 40 days.

I have heard this, too.