The Orthodox Christian Church begins Lent today.

Catholics will join them on Wednesday. This year, both the Orthodox and Catholic Churches will celebrate Easter on the 4th of April. This only happens once every few years.

For the Orthodox believers, Lent always begins on Monday, preceeded by a Sunday of Forgiveness. The first week of Lent is a time of severe fasting, which excludes meat, fish and poultry.

Poland is a 95% Catholic country. It is estimated that there are about 550 to 600,000 Orthodox believers in the country, mostly in north eastern Poland. (jn/jb)