No Meat On ALL Fridays?

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Hi everyone, I’m new here and was wondering if someone could answer my question. So my wife and I learned just a few months ago that catholics should abstain from something on ALL fridays, my understanding is that historically it used to be meat, but that today it no longer needs to be meat.

With Christmas fast approaching, I was wondering if fasting fridays still applies if Christmas falls on a friday. We have decided not to eat meat on fridays but there’s a big family dinner on Christmas day and I don’t want to insult the cook… I would also like to enjoy the whole meal with the family. I’m new at this so any information would be greatly appreciated, thank you!
 
Moneyball said:
Hi everyone, I’m new here and was wondering if someone could answer my question. So my wife and I learned just a few months ago that catholics should abstain from something on ALL fridays, my understanding is that historically it used to be meat, but that today it no longer needs to be meat.

With Christmas fast approaching, I was wondering if fasting fridays still applies if Christmas falls on a friday. We have decided not to eat meat on fridays but there’s a big family dinner on Christmas day and I don’t want to insult the cook… I would also like to enjoy the whole meal with the family. I’m new at this so any information would be greatly appreciated, thank you!
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Christmas is a Solemnity. No penance on Solemnities.

Eat the meat.

And even if it weren’t, if you’re in the US or Canada, because abstinence from meat can be substituted, be considerate where you can, substitute your penance and eat the meat.
 
Also, don’t forget that your national conference of bishops may have authorised alternative Friday penances. As a vegetarian I try to do one of these. Here in England one of them is go to Mass, which is easy enough.
 
porthos11 said:
Christmas is a Solemnity. No penance on Solemnities.

Eat the meat.

And even if it weren’t, if you’re in the US or Canada, because abstinence from meat can be substituted, be considerate where you can, substitute your penance and eat the meat.
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Wow, that was fast. Thanks for the swift reply. So what’s a Solemnity? Like a special occasion? Also, I was just wondering if substitution was an option because it doesn’t seem like real penance if I can change it everytime it happens to be an inconvenience. And yes, I’m from Canada.
 
peter26 said:
Also, don’t forget that your national conference of bishops may have authorised alternative Friday penances. As a vegetarian I try to do one of these. Here in England one of them is go to Mass, which is easy enough.
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It is good for them to do that. Normally just saying to do penance is most vague.
 
Moneyball said:
Wow, that was fast. Thanks for the swift reply. So what’s a Solemnity? Like a special occasion? Also, I was just wondering if substitution was an option because it doesn’t seem like real penance if I can change it everytime it happens to be an inconvenience. And yes, I’m from Canada.
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A Solemnity is a day of high rank in the Church’s calendar. This includes:

Immaculate Conception, Christmas, Mary Mother of God, St. Joseph, Annunciation, Easter Sunday (and all days up to and including the following Sunday); Ascension, Pentecost; Trinity Sunday, Corpus Christi, Sacred Heart (always a Friday), Nativity of St. John the Baptist, Assumption, All Saints, Christ the King.

If any of these fall on a Friday, no penance (some of these, of course will always fall on a Sunday and one, Sacred Heart is always on Friday. The others can move and fall on a Friday).
 
porthos11 said:
A Solemnity is a day of high rank in the Church’s calendar. This includes:

Immaculate Conception, Christmas, Mary Mother of God, St. Joseph, Annunciation, Easter Sunday (and all days up to and including the following Sunday); Ascension, Pentecost; Trinity Sunday, Corpus Christi, Sacred Heart (always a Friday), Nativity of St. John the Baptist, Assumption, All Saints, Christ the King.

If any of these fall on a Friday, no penance (some of these, of course will always fall on a Sunday and one, Sacred Heart is always on Friday. The others can move and fall on a Friday).
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Exactly, except (I think) on the Friday after Easter one is also dispensed from penance, because the days of the octave of Easter are celebrated as solemnities. Not 100% sure, but I think so.

Just a reminder (to the OP)–The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God is the one on new year’s day, also on a Friday this year (well, technically next year, 2016), so you can eat meat that day, too.

–Jen
 
Also, for people who want to pretend its the 1950s (not that there’s anything wrong with that), Pius XII apparently gave permission for US Catholics to eat meat on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Our pastor always mentions that in the announcements around Thanksgiving time. So even though it’s still okay now, it was okay back then too if it makes you feel better.
 
revert_jen said:
Exactly, except (I think) on the Friday after Easter one is also dispensed from penance, because the days of the octave of Easter are celebrated as solemnities. Not 100% sure, but I think so.

Just a reminder (to the OP)–The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God is the one on new year’s day, also on a Friday this year (well, technically next year, 2016), so you can eat meat that day, too.

–Jen
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You are correct. The entire Easter Octave is eight straight Solemnities.
 
I never realized that we were supposed to do some form of penance on Fridays, until this past year. I am a cradle Catholic. My sister was just as surprised when I asked if she realized this. I give up the internet on Fridays. Giving up meat is not a big thing for me, as I could easily go without meat.
 
porthos11 said:
A Solemnity is a day of high rank in the Church’s calendar. This includes:

Immaculate Conception, Christmas, Mary Mother of God, St. Joseph, Annunciation, Easter Sunday (and all days up to and including the following Sunday); Ascension, Pentecost; Trinity Sunday, Corpus Christi, Sacred Heart (always a Friday), Nativity of St. John the Baptist, Assumption, All Saints, Christ the King.

If any of these fall on a Friday, no penance (some of these, of course will always fall on a Sunday and one, Sacred Heart is always on Friday. The others can move and fall on a Friday).
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What you say sounds right. But I seem to remember that on the day before certain solemnities, such as Christmas Eve, it was customary, if not mandatory, to abstain from meat. At least it was in my Polish family.
 
Moneyball said:
Wow, that was fast. Thanks for the swift reply. So what’s a Solemnity? Like a special occasion? Also, I was just wondering if substitution was an option because it doesn’t seem like real penance if I can change it everytime it happens to be an inconvenience. And yes, I’m from Canada.
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Keep this in mind this year, fast and abstinence on March 25, 2016 which is Friday of the Passion of the Lord (Good Friday), and the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, normally assigned to this day, is transferred to Monday, April 4, 2016.
 
We should never fast on a feast day.

If you abstain from meat on Fridays as your choice of what penance you observe on that day and Christmas day falls on a Friday then you must NOT abstain from meat. That does not mean you are obliged to eat meat… for example if you are vegetarian or you just don’t like meat. On a feast day you do not abstain from what you enjoy.

To fast on Christmas day would be terrible thing. St Francis was very upset when one of his friars was going to fast on Christmas day falling on a Friday. He forbade the friars to fast on that day and added that meat should be smeared on the very walls of churches on a Friday that fell on Christmas day. Our dear father Francis was obviously making a point by saying that… not meaning that we should actually smear church walls with meat on such a day (lol).

I trust you and your friends will have a wonderful dinner on Christmas day!
 
roveau said:
We should never fast on a feast day.

If you abstain from meat on Fridays as your choice of what penance you observe on that day and Christmas day falls on a Friday then you must NOT abstain from meat. That does not mean you are obliged to eat meat… for example if you are vegetarian or you just don’t like meat. On a feast day you do not abstain from what you enjoy.

To fast on Christmas day would be terrible thing. St Francis was very upset when one of his friars was going to fast on Christmas day falling on a Friday. He forbade the friars to fast on that day and added that meat should be smeared on the very walls of churches on a Friday that fell on Christmas day. Our dear father Francis was obviously making a point by saying that… not meaning that we should actually smear church walls with meat on such a day (lol).

I trust you and your friends will have a wonderful dinner on Christmas day!
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We also need to be clear with the word “feast” as there is a technical use in the modern calendar and a loose use. In this post, the word used loosely. The technical term for the day penance is lifted is “Solemnity”. This used to be called a Class I Feast. These are what trump Friday penance.

“Feast” is also a technical day ranking that’s lower than a Solemnity but higher than a Memorial, and was formerly known as a Class II Feast. Celebrations of this rank include Holy Family, Presentation, Transfiguration, a celebration of any of the twelve Apostles (excluding St. Peter), St. Lawrence, Triumph of the Cross. On Feasts, penances are NOT lifted and still attach if any of them fall on a Friday.
 
roveau said:
We should never fast on a feast day.

If you abstain from meat on Fridays as your choice of what penance you observe on that day and Christmas day falls on a Friday then you must NOT abstain from meat. That does not mean you are obliged to eat meat… for example if you are vegetarian or you just don’t like meat. On a feast day you do not abstain from what you enjoy.

To fast on Christmas day would be terrible thing. St Francis was very upset when one of his friars was going to fast on Christmas day falling on a Friday. He forbade the friars to fast on that day and added that meat should be smeared on the very walls of churches on a Friday that fell on Christmas day. Our dear father Francis was obviously making a point by saying that… not meaning that we should actually smear church walls with meat on such a day (lol).

I trust you and your friends will have a wonderful dinner on Christmas day!
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You mean solemnity. Feasts and memorials are not exempt from abstinence rules.
 
The priest at the TLM I attended on Christmas Day said since Christmas is a Solemnity and with a Solemnity like that falling on a Friday, those who observe all Fridays no meat even when it is not Lent can partake in meat. He made a point of the fact he was going to have a chicken dinner with family after the Mass during the homily as he normally does not eat meat on Fridays but will partake of meat on Fridays only if its a Solemnity.

I know my parents grew up with no meat on all Fridays with the exception of Solemnities. But I’ve never observed all Fridays like that but do the Lenten Fridays & Ash Wednesday.
 
peter26 said:
Also, don’t forget that your national conference of bishops may have authorised alternative Friday penances. As a vegetarian I try to do one of these. Here in England one of them is go to Mass, which is easy enough.
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Why is going to mass a penance? I consider it an honor and a privilege?
 
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