Today begins one of the quarterly periods observed by the Catholic Church called "Ember Days." I remember them growing up. Our Catholic calendar showed a half fish meaning that on those days (Wednesday and Saturday) meat could only be eaten at the main meal. Friday, of course, was a day of complete abstinence. All three days were fast days (one main meal and two smaller meals that did not add up to a full meal).
The purpose of the ember days was to sanctify the coming season. Catholic Answers quotes from the Catholic Encyclopedia describing them this way:
They were definitely arranged and prescribed for the entire Church by Pope Gregory VII (1073-1085) for the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday after December 13 (S. Lucia), after Ash Wednesday, after Whitsunday, and after September 14 (Exaltation of the Cross). The purpose of their introduction, besides the general one intended by all prayer and fasting, was to thank God for the gifts of nature, to teach men to make use of them in moderation, and to assist the needy.
The creation of the ember days, as was often the case, illustrating the wisdom of Holy Mother Church, was to replace pagan celebrations. You can't substitute nothing for something so the Church sanctified the harvest and the winter and spring solstices by creating the ember days and urging her children to sanctify each of the seasons.
So what happened to the ember days?
Vatican II --
-- one more pious practice gutted. Well, they didn't exactly gut it. The Congregation for the Defense of the Faith turned the decision to observe the ember days over to the local bishops conferences. And here's what the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) decided, not surprisingly:
Vigils and Ember Days, as most now know, no longer oblige to fast and abstinence. However, the liturgical renewal and the deeper appreciation of the joy of the holy days of the Christian year will, we hope, result in a renewed appreciation as to why our forefathers spoke of "a fast before a feast." We impose no fast before any feast-day, but we suggest that the devout will find greater Christian joy in the feasts of the liturgical calendar if they freely bind themselves, for their own motives and in their own spirit of piety, to prepare for each Church festival by a day of particular self-denial, penitential prayer and fasting.
Ah...the "liturgical renewal" which has given rise to so much holiness in "Holy" Mother Church by:
- removing the Friday abstinence because we all know that people will voluntarily do much more Friday penance than previously since Friday is the day Christ died and it's a penitential day,
- reducing the number of holy days of obligation or moving them to Sundays,
- turning Thursday into Sunday for the Feast of Ascension Thursday...
Doesn't ICK, FSSP and SSPX encourage Ember day fasts?
ReplyDeleteActually, Friday is still a day of penance with abstinence being the recommended form of penance, even by the wishy-washy bishops, with the option of a harder penitential act if the person so chooses, such as alms giving. Now knowing human nature, we are aware that most people aren’t going to do any penance voluntarily,and since most Catholics are poorly catechized, the majority believe that they are no longer required to do anything to sanctify Fridays. So, technically Friday should still be set apart by penance, most Catholics just don’t know it.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/liturgical-year-and-calendar/lent/us-bishops-pastoral-statement-on-penance-and-abstinence
We haven't had any sermons on them, but I subscribe to Benedictus (Latin Mass daily) and they are included, so I presume the answer is yes. Anyone using a 1962 (or before) missal has them and the FSSP calendar for 2023 shows the half fish days.
ReplyDeleteI attend an SSPX mission and although they say that fasting on Ember days is not required under pain of sin, they do recommend the practice as salutary for one’s soul.
ReplyDeleteI think as more people return to the traditional Latin mass church Ember days will be back. My little social network is an example. One of the guys, who sells the Rosary Extremest hoodies, posted who's doing ember days. Only 17 of us there but almost everyone responded yes even our youngest member going to that new trad Catholic college in Maryland. Then the confusion set in about the fasting and abstinence requirements so I put this together and posted on my blog. Actually everyone was very excited in getting involved with it. Here is what I put together for the rules of Ember days. https://tridentinecatholic.com/blog/2022/12/14/ember-days-dec-14-16-and-17/ Even my calendar shows the half fish and full fish. Francis doesn't know it but his nonsense is driving people back to the traditional church. Maybe he actually was put there by the Holy Spirit to restore the church.
ReplyDelete