Meatless Fridays throughout the year may return to the United States

[Cat]

The practice of Friday penance isn’t just penitential in character, so the fact that, for many people, abstaining from meat isn’t much of a sacrifice should have little bearing on the issue. For one thing, it would be a sacrifice for most people (we don’t all live near a bay with plentiful access to crab and salmon), even if it doesn’t amount to much more than an inconvenience. Inconveniences are crosses, too, after all. For another, the requirement would compel us to be mindful of our obligations and to structure our lives accordingly, which is a good thing in itself. For a third, abstension from meat touches on public behavior (meals, in general, being social affairs) and so has the added benefit of establishing in-group solidarity and out-group distinctiveness. Put simply, it makes Catholics mindful of their similarity to each other and their dissimilarity with everyone else, which is also a good thing. The loss of this sort of distinctive Catholic identity over the last few decades has been a positively bad thing for the Church, and reclaiming it would be a good thing. Who else has Friday fish fries?

Who else has Friday fish fries?

Every restaurant and fast food chain in the U.S. Since when is “Culvers” Catholic?

Many people who aren’t Catholic routinely eat out at these restaurants on Fridays specifically for the lavish fish/seafood specials. Some sacrifice.

Also every lodge and club that prepares meals, even if that lodge/club is not Catholic.

I belong to a lodge (Norwegian singers), and they do a Friday fish fry, and this nationwide organization is definitely not Catholic! (Norwegians = Lutheran)

I know a lot of non-Catholic Christians who hail Lent with joy because of the Fish Fry Specials at the restaurants and clubs. Again, some sacrifice.

In the United States, Friday fish fries and eating fish on Fridays has essentially become part of our American culture, and there are a lot of young people who have no idea that the practice has its origin in Catholicism.

 

[Cat]

Yeah, I admit that’s true for some people. One friend of mine from graduate school, who was a devout Catholic herself, was also a pescetarian (someone whose only meat is fish and other seafood), and she often remarked that even the current rules for Lent had no effect on her.

Not a bad idea. In eastern (Byzantine) Christianity, abstaining from dairy (and eggs, too) almost always goes with abstinence from meat. With only one exception, they never abstain from just meat.

Yeah, that’s a valid pastoral concern.

Okay, I understand. Perhaps I underestimate the extent to which sweets can genuinely control one’s life. I admit I myself don’t have much of a sweet tooth.



Alright, I see your point.

Alright, you’ve definitely convinced me at least a little. I confess that what you describe is genuinely outside my realm of experience.

For me, meat - well, *cheese *really, but meat too - is my version of the typical food-I-know-I-should-eat-less-of-but-just-love-too-much.

Fair enough. I do think that the typical eastern fasting is capable, if done correctly and with guidance, of benefiting almost anyone. But I definitely see your point about mere routine abstinence from meat. I can see how that wouldn’t affect some people even if they did it.

I confess I’d still feel happy if they reinstituted mandatory Friday abstinence from meat, but perhaps that’s because I let my own experience color my expectations.

Yeah, that I can understand. Many people I know are dependent on their morning cup of coffee to basically wake up. I’ve never been a big coffee drinker - I’ve probably had fewer than ten cups of the stuff in my whole life - and I am grateful that I do not suffer from any such dependency. I never drink soda, either.

Still, don’t get me wrong, Cat: I do not consider myself a healthy eater. Far from it. But I’ll admit I am if considered in comparison with the scenarios you describe.

Thanks for the comments. Yes, it’s a sad situation in the U.S. You just have to open your eyes and really take a good look at the people all around you. How many of them are not merely a little big or chubby, but really big? Most of them didn’t get that way eating 16 oz steaks instead of 3 oz steaks. They got there eating “treats” as “meals.”

 

[CB_Catholic]

Thanks for the comments. Yes, it’s a sad situation in the U.S. You just have to open your eyes and really take a good look at the people all around you. How many of them are not merely a little big or chubby, but really big? Most of them didn’t get that way eating 16 oz steaks instead of 3 oz steaks. They got there eating “treats” as “meals.”

When my grandchildren were small I used to take them to the local park and playground and I would pack them a lunch and a snack. They got a sandwich, some fresh fruit, a small cup of yogurt, a small baggie of pretzels or chips and water bottles and sometimes a fruit drink. They ran around like crazy and used the playground equipment like little gymnasts.

However, I was appalled at the number of overweight children I saw. I mean really overweight. And, observing them, I saw they were not nearly as active as my 2 grandchildren were. They spent a considerable amount of time sitting with their parents, eating. Some of these parents would pack a laundry basket full of chips, cookies, cheetos, soft drinks, candy bars, etc. and bring it to the playground for an afternoon of steady munching, along with a big meal from the local McDonald’s or Burger King for lunch. I got a real eye-opener at the playground.
I did not feed my children like that and neither was I fed like that and there was not nearly the number of overweight children–it was rare. Yes, I realize that there are some individuals with a genetic predisposition to being overweight, however, that is rare also. Almost all of the problems with weight in this country are due to poor diet and lack of exercise, and it is epidemic.

I am not trying to be critical, but I really think a lot of people, despite all the media attention, etc.,just have not internalized the basics of good nutrition and exercise. And the eating habits are expensive. People complain about the price of regular food, but snack foods are a huge rip off, and if they were cut down on, people could eat better food.

I admire my daughter and her sensible diet and exercise guidelines for the girls. They also are involved in competitive swimming and other sports. They have some form of exercise nearly every day, riding their bikes or scooters, roller skating, jumping rope, a trampoline, besides their swimming. They are thin and healthy and physically fit. But it takes their mother’s guidance and dedication to instill good habits into them. They will thank her for it later.

 

[thewanderer]

In the United States, Friday fish fries and eating fish on Fridays has essentially become part of our American culture, and there are a lot of young people who have no idea that the practice has its origin in Catholicism.

I’d also just like to add to that by saying even I, who was raised knowing that the reason we don’t eat meat on fridays is because of Catholicism, never thought about that growing up or even in college. I avoided meat out of habit and because it was what I did, but it wasn’t really a big sacrifice and it never actually reminded me that Friday is a remembrance of the passion, never once did I think about that on friday because of not eating meat. Honestly, if peope are going to bring back a set penance for Fridays I think it should include the stations of the cross, because that will actually help remind people what the reason for friday penance is.

 

[Fone_Bone_2001]

I told my Catholic friends further inland about the meatless Friday penance. They just laughed, and said, “It looks like we’re back to fish sticks and grilled cheese sandwiches on Friday.” And grilled cheese sandwiches are not much of a penance either.

True, I admit it. I know I’m a broken record here, but this is why I really admire eastern Christianity’s fasting standards. They abstain from eggs and dairy as well as meat (and often from all animal products as well).

Thanks for the comments. Yes, it’s a sad situation in the U.S. You just have to open your eyes and really take a good look at the people all around you. How many of them are not merely a little big or chubby, but really big? Most of them didn’t get that way eating 16 oz steaks instead of 3 oz steaks. They got there eating “treats” as “meals.”

I definitely agree with you there. I imagine it’d be quite difficult to get fat off of steak. But treats and snacks, absolutely.

 

[10thCrusader]

The practice of Friday penance isn’t just penitential in character, so the fact that, for many people, abstaining from meat isn’t much of a sacrifice should have little bearing on the issue. For one thing, it would be a sacrifice for most people (we don’t all live near a bay with plentiful access to crab and salmon), even if it doesn’t amount to much more than an inconvenience. Inconveniences are crosses, too, after all. For another, the requirement would compel us to be mindful of our obligations and to structure our lives accordingly, which is a good thing in itself. For a third, abstension from meat touches on public behavior (meals, in general, being social affairs) and so has the added benefit of establishing in-group solidarity and out-group distinctiveness. Put simply, it makes Catholics mindful of their similarity to each other and their dissimilarity with everyone else, which is also a good thing. The loss of this sort of distinctive Catholic identity over the last few decades has been a positively bad thing for the Church, and reclaiming it would be a good thing. Who else has Friday fish fries?

You have a good point. I grew up in a relatively small town, and on Fridays, you would see a lot of your fellow parishioners at the local fish and chip shop. We would all at least acknowledge each other, or more likely engage in some laughs and fellowship. There was a kind of solidarity in those Friday fish meals.

 

[CMatt25]

Since you’re asking for opinions, I don’t really think it matters. I grew up in a household where we never ate meat on fridays…so we basically feasted on non-meat Chinese foods that were our very favorites anyway, or pizza, or mac and cheese. I don’t abstain from meat anymore except for Lenten fridays, but it wouldn’t make a difference for me if I had to again. We have such varied choices for food (unlike in the ‘olden days’ when it was first instituted to help out the fishermen), that it really doesn’t matter.

Rence, would vegetable lo mein count? It’s one of my many Chinese favorites.

 

[CMatt25]

For those who are vegetarian, and don’t eat meat anyway, one can still do a penance, by not eating lasagna or pizza and maybe eating plainer fare.

If they usually eat plain cheese pizza with crushed red pepper on it, could they skip the red pepper and make it plainer?

 

[CB_Catholic]

If they usually eat plain cheese pizza with crushed red pepper on it, could they skip the red pepper and make it plainer?

How about skipping the cheese?

 

[CMatt25]

How about skipping the cheese?

But then you would be losing out on a source of protein. Honestly I don’t get returning to meatless Fridays throughout the yr. Catholics believe their bishops have teaching authority. But they keep changing what they teach. One set of bishops said meatless Fridays during Lent. Now another group of bishops are considering saying no that’s not right. It seems what is right or wrong simply varies depending on which bishops have control at any given time.

 

[maryjk]

Since you’re asking for opinions, I don’t really think it matters. I grew up in a household where we never ate meat on fridays…so we basically feasted on non-meat Chinese foods that were our very favorites anyway, or pizza, or mac and cheese. I don’t abstain from meat anymore except for Lenten fridays, but it wouldn’t make a difference for me if I had to again. We have such varied choices for food (unlike in the ‘olden days’ when it was first instituted to help out the fishermen), that it really doesn’t matter.

Totally missed this post, until someone quoted it.

Proof of this? (Hint: it is a myth)

 

[JackyB]

But then you would be losing out on a source of protein. Honestly I don’t get returning to meatless Fridays throughout the yr. Catholics believe their bishops have teaching authority. But they keep changing what they teach. One set of bishops said meatless Fridays during Lent. Now another group of bishops are considering saying no that’s not right. It seems what is right or wrong simply varies depending on which bishops have control at any given time.

Don’t panic one day without a source of protein wont harm you. We have not eaten meat for the past year on a Friday and have come to enjoy a whole host of differing meals, a little imagination, add a touch of humour makes for a pleasant change, try it CMatt25.

 

[CMatt25]

Don’t panic one day without a source of protein wont harm you. We have not eaten meat for the past year on a Friday and have come to enjoy a whole host of differing meals, a little imagination, add a touch of humour makes for a pleasant change, try it CMatt25.

I know. I actually have a medical condition where too much protein can give me fits. I do suppose I’d have to imagine dough and sauce with no cheese, let alone the crushed red pepper, as being pizza though and I’m not even Italian! .

 

[10thCrusader]

Don’t panic one day without a source of protein wont harm you. We have not eaten meat for the past year on a Friday and have come to enjoy a whole host of differing meals, a little imagination, add a touch of humour makes for a pleasant change, try it CMatt25.

Actually, missing out on the protein is a problem if you’re hypoglycemic like me. The main point is that the directive is to abstain from flesh meats, and most people are willing to do that. I don’t think it is helpful to promote additional restrictions above the prescribed abstinence on your fellow Catholics, when you don’t know their specific situation or particular dietary needs.

 

[JackyB]

Actually, missing out on the protein is a problem if you’re hypoglycemic like me. The main point is that the directive is to abstain from flesh meats, and most people are willing to do that. I don’t think it is helpful to promote additional restrictions above the prescribed abstinence on your fellow Catholics, when you don’t know their specific situation or particular dietary needs.

Wasn’t promoting it actually please don’t suggest that in any way I was trying to harm anyone, actually I was attempting to lighten up things a little. I am so very sorry that you are hypoglycemic not pleasant I am sure.

 

[CB_Catholic]

But then you would be losing out on a source of protein. Honestly I don’t get returning to meatless Fridays throughout the yr. Catholics believe their bishops have teaching authority. But they keep changing what they teach. One set of bishops said meatless Fridays during Lent. Now another group of bishops are considering saying no that’s not right. It seems what is right or wrong simply varies depending on which bishops have control at any given time.

It was a joke. No need to take it so seriously.