Ash Wednesday 2024: Can you drink coffee? A guide to fasting

Ash Wednesday, in the Christian church, is the beginning of the Lenten season leading up to Easter Sunday.

It also happens to fall on Valentine’s Day this year, the first time it has happened since 2018.

It is observed with a service where the faithful are marked with ashes. Many adults, who are able to do so, fast or at least abstain from meat.

On this day, you might see a Christian or a Catholic wearing smudged ashes on their forehead.

Maybe you are a practicing Christian and are fasting this Ash Wednesday, and you are wondering what you can and cannot eat on the first day of Lent.

Here is what you need to know about this first day of Lent in most Christian denominations and the rules of fasting.

Ash Wednesday in the Christian church is the beginning of the Lenten season. It takes place six and a half weeks before Easter Sunday.

It is observed with a service where the faithful are marked with ashes. Many adults fast or at least abstain from eating meat.

It is not a holy day of obligation, but it is one of the most attended services that do not fall on a Sunday during the liturgical year.

Catholics and some protestants, including Anglicans and Lutherans, also hold Ash Wednesday services.

Eastern Orthodox churches do not follow this schedule because they begin Lent on a Monday, and therefore, do not observe Ash Wednesday.

Catholics are not allowed to eat meat on Ash Wednesday. Most adults are expected to fast and eat only one full meal per day. Two smaller meals can count for this requirement.

Acceptable foods to eat on Ash Wednesday include milk, eggs, fish, grains, fruits and vegetables, according to Forklift and Palate.

There also are no limits on most beverages you can have on Ash Wednesday, so coffee and tea would be acceptable.

Children, the elderly, pregnant women and those with certain health conditions are exempt from fasting on Ash Wednesday and during Lent.

According to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), the fasting requirements are for those ages 18-59 while abstinence from meat starts at age 14.