Abstinence & Fasting Is Not Automatically Dispensed on Solemnities

Last year I wrote an article entitled "Is Fasting or Abstinence Required on Holy Days of Obligation in Lent?" and unfortunately more Traditional Catholics continue to think that abstinence even on Fridays in Lent is dispensed eo ipso when a solemnity (e.g. Annunciation Day, St. Joseph's Day) falls on a Friday or when a culturally important day (e.g. St. Patrick's Day) occurs on a Friday. Let's review ecclesiastical history on this important point.

The Clear Teaching of the 1917 Code of Canon Law

The question of whether Holy Days of Obligation abrogate the requirement of Friday abstinence outside of Lent is mentioned in the 1917 Code:

"On [Sundays] or feasts of precept, the law of abstinence or of abstinence and fast or of fast only ceases, except during Lent, nor is the vigil anticipated; likewise it ceases on Holy [Saturday] afternoon" (1917 Code, Canon 1252 § 4). [Translation taken from THE 1917 OR PIO-BENEDICTINE CODE OF CANON LAW in English Translation by Dr. Edward Peters]

The 1917 Code is explicit - feasts of precepts do not remove the requirement to fast or abstain during Lent. The only way that the obligation would be removed during the season of Lent would be if a dispensation would be specifically offered by lawful Church authorities for a particular day.

Historical Evidence Confirms Even Holy Days of Obligation in Lent were not Dispensed Automatically from the Laws of Either Fast or Abstinence

In 1954, Pope Pius XII issued a decree granting bishops the permission to dispense from Friday abstinence for the Feast of St. Joseph which that year fell on a Friday. A March 26, 1954 article in the Guardian elaborates: "Bishops throughout the world have been granted the faculty to dispense their faithful from the law of abstinence on the Feast of St. Joseph, Friday, March 19. The power was granted in a decree issued by the Sacred Congregation of the Council, which said it acted at the special mandate of His Holiness Pope Pius XII. The decree was published in L'Osservatore Romano made no mention of a dispensation from the Lenten fast." 

As such, St. Joseph's Day did not permit the faithful to eat meat on Fridays in Lent unless such a specific dispensation was offered, which was very rarely done. This was also at a time when there were many other fast days in the year outside of Lent. Likewise, to those who maintain the 1917 Code's requirement to also fast all forty weekdays of Lent - which was observed since the Early Church - St. Joseph's Day remains a day of fast. Surely St. Joseph would want us to produce worthy fruits of penance during this holiest season as we prepare for the Pascal mystery. And surely the same can be said of our Lady, the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, whose we celebrate each year on March 25th.

Unfortunately, the 1983 Code of Canon Law which aligns with the many modernist changes in the Church weakly states:

"The penitential days and times in the universal Church are every Friday of the whole year and the season of Lent. Abstinence from meat, or from some other food as determined by the Episcopal Conference, is to be observed on all Fridays, unless a solemnity should fall on a Friday. Abstinence and fasting are to be observed on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday" (1983 Code, Canons 1251 - 1252). 

Dispensations From Abstinence Were Previously Required Even for Holy Days of Obligation Outside of Lent

The notion that a solemnity that is not even a Holy Day of Obligation would trump Friday abstinence in Lent is absurd and a radical departure from all of our traditions. Such a notion comes from 1983 and never beforehand. For instance, even Christmas would in and of itself not dispense Friday abstinence in the Medieval Church as Dom Gueranger writes in the Liturgical Year published in 1886:

"To encourage her children in their Christmas joy, the Church has dispensed with the law of abstinence, if this Feast fall on a Friday. This dispensation was granted by Pope Honorius III, who ascended the Papal Throne in 1216. It is true that we find it mentioned by Pope St Nicholas I, in the ninth century; but the dispensation was not universal; for the Pontiff is replying to the consultations of the Bulgarians, to whom he concedes this indulgence, in order to encourage them to celebrate these Feasts with solemnity and joy: Christmas Day, St Stephen, St John the Evangelist, the Epiphany, the Assumption of our Lady, St John the Baptist, and SS Peter and Paul. When the dispensation for Christmas Day was extended to the whole Church, these other Feasts were not mentioned."

Previously, a dispensation was required by the Holy Father even on Holy Days of Obligation that fell outside of Lent. Two examples indicating this are Pope Leo XIII's 1890 dispensation for Assumption Day and a 1907 dispensation issued for Canada for All Saints Day. All Saints Day was at that time a Holy Day of Obligation in Canada. Read How St. Pius X & the 1917 Code of Canon Law Liberalized Fasting, Abstinence, and Holy Days of Obligation for more information

The Catholic Encyclopedia on St. Pius X's Supremi disciplinæ indicates that fasting was abolished eo ipso only starting in 1911 for all Holy Days of Obligation (which were at the same time reduced to only 8): "The present Motu Proprio institutes another important change in legislation. As feasting and fasting are incompatible Pius X has abolished the obligation of fasting as well as that of abstinence for the Universal Church, should such obligation coincide with any of the eight feasts, as above." In practice, we know that the exception was Lent. Lenten abstinence and fast always remained unless explicitly dispensed from even after the weakening changes in 1911.

Year-Round Friday Abstinence on Solemnities

The principles here apply as well to high-ranking feastdays outside of Lent. In years when non-Holy Days of Obligation (e.g. The Sacred Heart, Nativity of St. John the Baptist, Ss. Peter and Paul) fall on a Friday, the practice of Friday abstinence should never be ignored. We have a responsibility of doing penance and the shared act of Friday penance is, like Sunday Mass, a cornerstone of the Catholic Faith. Even the 1983 Code calls for year-round Friday penance!

Continue Fasting and Abstaining Both In and Out of Lent

Must we be reminded of the warning of Pope Benedict XIV, who in 1741 warned: "The observance of Lent is the very badge of the Christian warfare. By it, we prove ourselves not to be enemies of the cross of Christ. By it, we avert the scourges of divine justice. By it, we gain strength against the princes of darkness, for it shields us with heavenly help. Should mankind grow remiss in their observance of Lent, it would be a detriment to God's glory, a disgrace to the Catholic religion, and a danger to Christian souls. Neither can it be doubted that such negligence would become the source of misery to the world, of public calamity, and of private woe."

There is no incompatibility between fasting and abstaining and celebrating liturgical solemnities. Even Sundays used to be required days of abstinence (but not fast). Let us fast and abstain always on St. Joseph's Day, Annunciation Day, and St. Patrick's Day each year during Lent. Our adherence to and preservation of the Traditional Catholic Faith requires this. 

Latching on to a modernist novelty from 1983 is incompatible with the Traditional Latin Mass and the Traditional Catholic Faith. And let us offer our acts of penance for the conversion of sinners to the Traditional Catholic Faith. There is no prohibition against fasting on solemnities; on the contrary, Tradition requires it.

Want to learn more about the history of fasting and abstinence? Check out the Definitive Guide to Catholic Fasting and Abstinence.