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Obviously Mardi Gras (which began as a MUCH more low key sort of thing) has been dragged into the mire as has so much in western society. None the less (and speaking as an Anglican now), it makes about as much sense to accuse Rome of the excesses of Mardi Gras as it does to accuse the Calvinism of the Puritans for the historically recorded acts of vandalism,violence and oppression which some of them committed against members of other denominations between the Reformation and the early colonization of North America.

That being said, it is at best a misunderstanding to suggest that Lent is a celebration. Indeed for those of us in the various historical churches (Anglican, Lutheran, Roman Catholic, and Orthodox) who observe Lent, it is a time of humility and prayer. Lent is intended as a set time in the year in which people seek to understand that Christ's suffering and death were required because of *our* sins.

For all of Lent our liturgies are also modified to reflect that, even though Sunday is by definition a sort of miniature feast day, even on Sundays we are to be remembering and contemplating that He bore *our* griefs and carried *our* sorrows...and by HIS stripes we are healed.

Also, traditionally in Anglicanism (and elsewhere) one abstains from something throughout the time of Lent - usually something which is not essential to one's life but which one likes a great deal - in my case it's often chocolate. The idea here is to use this abstinence as an ongoing reminder that no matter how much I'd like a chocolate cookie, my minor discomfort at not being able to have one is far less than nothing compared to Christ's sufferings because of my sins.

Similarly keeping the fast on Wednesday and Friday (traditionally the intent here was to eat nothing until after Communion on those afternoons; though where such is not available one simply doesn't eat breakfast or lunch) is intended as another one of those reminders. [Reader_David - is Orthodox practice on this similar or different?]

Indeed I would submit that the failure to recognize Lent is one of the ongoing contributing factors to the false triumphalism so evident in some portions of the Protestant spectrum.

In short, focusing on the excesses of a paganized Mardi Gras appears to me as merely an excuse to avoid dealing with the true nature of the Lenten Season, and by doing so one is simply (intentionally or otherwise) avoiding recognizing the depths of one's own sinful and fallen nature.

Orthodox practice is to fast according to the Lenten rule on Wednesdays and Fridays (except for the week of the Pharisee and the Publican, Bright Week (following Pascha) and the time from Christmas until the vigil of Theophany. (Of course in addition to the four major fasts: Great Lent, the Nativity Lent, the Apostle's Fast and the Dormition Fast, and sometimes modified to allow oil and wine, or fish, oil and wine when a major feast falls on the day.) The strictly observant eat only one meal on Lenten days, and that after the ninth hour (3:00 PM). More commonly the rule of abstinence from all foods derived from vertibrates, oil, wine and strong drink is observed in addition to a lightening of meals form what are usually eaten.

I wasn't really faulting the Latin church for the excesses of Mardi Gras, only for 1. vitiating their traditional fasting discipline at Vatican II, and 2. not providing a lead up to Lent in terms of discipline to ease the faithful into the season of repentence as the Orthodox Church does even back when their ascetic practice was more vigorous--which lack provided the easily paganized last big party just before Lent (which now thanks to 1. no longer even serves as a farewell to meat).