St. Joseph the Worker: Fish Fry

Before I was born, there was a long-standing tradition that Catholics were to abstain from eating meat on Fridays. There is nothing inherently evil about eating meat on Fridays, of course, but such abstinence was meant to be a sacrifice, a tangible way for Catholics to remind themselves of Christ's sacrifice. In its abstinence rule, the Church simply required its members to abstain from eating meat with the idea that people would limit their food to vegetables and grains on Fridays. However, meat is generally considered to be the flesh of warm blooded land animals. Fish, on the other hand, are cold blooded water-dwelling creatures. Using this technicality, people began consuming the flesh of fish in place of the flesh of animals on days of abstinence. Fish thus became a part of the culture of the Catholic Church.

The Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) modified and relaxed its rule that the faithful abstain from eating meat on Fridays; however, while Pope Paul VI and the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops in 1966 relaxed but did not remove the Church's rule requiring Catholics to abstain from eating meat on Fridays, it is now widely accepted, and acceptable, for Catholics to eat meat on Fridays. 

However, on Ash Wednesday and all Fridays in Lent, we resume the tradition of abstaining from eating meat. Fish has become the de facto substitution for many (except for those who do not eat fish, for whatever reason). This has led to a rather nice tradition in many parishes, including mine: that of a fish fry. On Friday's during Lent, my parish, St. Joseph the Worker, offers a Friday night fish dinner for its parishioners. The menu changes weekly, but one can go to the parish hall and have a rather nice, reasonably-priced meal.

Tonight's dinner was fish 'n chips with coleslaw.