On Wednesday, many denominations of Christianity across the world will enter the six-week season of renunciation: Lent. It's a period to observe rituals, traditions and prayer that focus on penitence, abstinence and reflection.
Each year, Open Bible's r is there to figure out what's on people's minds the most during the 40 days of Lent. After all, we all know that the moment you say you can't have something, that's all you want, all the time.
Do not click on .
You cannot have this chocolate cake... see? Source: Murdoch Books
What's Lent anyway?
A little background: "Giving up something for Lent" is common practice, symbolising the suffering of Jesus Christ during the 40 days he spent in the Judean desert fasting and praying. Jesus went into the desert after his baptism, in preparation for his ministry. During this time, he avoided being tempted by the devil three times- with his first trial being tempted to break his fast by turning a stone to bread.
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Lenten biscuits (kwarezimal)
Of course, there's more to it than simply giving up something you like during the six-week period. For example, Catholics observe fasting on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, eating only one full meal and snacks on these days. Abstinence from meat (fish is okay) on Fridays is also practised by some Catholics during Lent.
"Lent is like a long "retreat" in which to re-enter oneself and listen to God's voice in order to overcome the temptations of the Evil One and to find the truth of our existence," Pope Benedict said in 2010 during.
Enter Twitter
Lent seems pretty far removed from the banter of Twitter, however, the Historical Twitter Lent Tracker has its finger on the pulse of what's really happening during Lent.
Since 2009, creator Stephen Smith has used Twitter's API (Application Programming Interface) to analyse what people say they will be abstaining from. The results are a fascinating insight into social trends, gathered through tens of thousands of personal statements.
It's probably no surprise that food has been the number one category that people want to give up since Smith started the charts. Last year people were twice as likely to give up some kind of food than they were technology or habits. As we've seen, abstaining from food and general fasting is very closely linked to the sacrifice of Lent.
2019 Top Categories according to the Twitter Lent Tracker - 2020 results are trickling in now. Source: Twitter Lent Tracker
Last year people were twice as likely to give up some kind of food than they were technology or habits.
Goodbye chocolate and chips
However, the type of food people want to give up has been changing over the past few years.
For example, chocolate was historically number one on the abstinence list for years - no surprise there - but it started hurtling down the chart around 2018 and was solidly at number four by 2019. This year, it's barely rating a mention.
Lent trends come and go, but there's some notable increases in what people are giving up in 2020. Source: Twitter Lent Tracker
Other 'traditional' foods to give up for Lent aren't getting a look-in this year either. Potato chips started plummeting in 2017 and at the time of writing, literally no one was giving up chips for Lent in 2020. Nor is anyone interested in cutting back their soft drink intake or fast food habit, and even lollies are on a sharp downward trend.
Hello coffee and alcohol
Is this a sign of the times? Could it be that so many have already sacrificed the chocolate, chips, lollies and fast food in the name of health that when Lent rolls around, they are left with few options?
Can we tempt you with the ?
It's fair to say than an Irish coffee cupcake mountain will not be on the menu for many Lent-devotees this year. Source: Chris Middleton
This might explain the upwards trend in giving up coffee. Despite mounting evidence to suggest the , Twitter has always been a world unto itself. Coffee is on a sharp increase on the abstinence front.
There's also been an increase in the number of people giving up alcohol for the six-week period. Numbers giving up it up have heavily increased since last year, despite it being reasonably steady as a choice in the nine years previous.
This year, Lent is looking a little like parched March.
This follows the recent rise in popularity of events like Dry January, , and . This year, Lent is looking a little like parched March.
Be warned, though. Giving up alcohol cold-turkey might be harder than you think. "It’s important to note that giving up alcohol after drinking it for a long time can be challenging," says Chief Executive Officer, Dr Erin Lalor AM. "If a person who is dependent on alcohol stops drinking alcohol, they may be at risk of seizures or fits. Medical assistance may be required to help the person get through withdrawal safely."
So it's best to check in with your healthcare professional if you're planning on ditching alcohol for Lent.
Plant-based diets are in
Mirroring the social and environmental trend towards more plant-based eating, giving up meat for Lent has been trending up for the past few years. It hit number six on the chart in 2019 and looks to break the top five in 2020.
Find the recipe for spinach manicotti .
Plant-based recipes like this one make it so easy... Source: Abrams
"Plant-based recipes" was the , and the trend towards "" is growing.
Movements like Australia's in September (an initiative of charity ) and the global in June are seeing a higher number of participants with every passing year. Given that meat is traditionally not eaten on Fridays during Lent, going meat-free seems like a natural match for the full six weeks.
It seems fitting that people would announce on Twitter that they are giving up Twitter.
Alcohol vs Twitter
The gathers data until well into Lent, so it's still early days to call a . That said, alcohol .
Yes, ironically, giving up social networking was top spot last year, with Twitter being singled out separately at number three on the list. It seems fitting that people would announce on Twitter that they are giving up Twitter. Of course, how successful they are remains to be seen. Watch .
