2026 Traditional Catholic Fasting and Abstinence Calendar

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As a follow-up to my significant research on Traditional (Roman and Eastern) Catholic fasting and abstinence, I have put together a 2026 fasting and abstinence calendar for my devotional purposes. This is a follow-up to similar ones I created over the past several years.

Traditional Catholic Fasting Rules:

Fasting: Fasting refers to how much food we eat. It means taking only one meal during a calendar day. The meal should be an average-sized meal as overeating at the one meal is against the spirit of the fast. Fasting generally means that the meal is to be taken later in the day. Along with the one meal, up to two snacks (technically called either a collation or frustulum) are permitted. These are optional, not required. Added up together, they may not equal the size of the one meal. No other snacking throughout the day is permitted. Fasting does not affect liquids, aside from the Eucharistic Fast which is a separate matter.

Abstinence: Abstinence in this context refers to not eating meat. Meat refers to the fleshmeat of mammals or fowl. Beef, poultry, lamb, etc are all forbidden on days of abstinence. Abstinence does not currently prohibit animal byproducts like dairy (e.g. cheese, butter, milk) or eggs, but in times past they were prohibited. Fish is permitted along with shellfish and other cold-blooded animals like alligators. In times past, days of fast were always days of abstinence as well; however, not all days of abstinence were days of mandatory fasting.

Partial Abstinence: Partial Abstinence refers to eating meat only at the principal meal of the day. Days of partial abstinence do not permit meat to be eaten as part of the collation or the frustulum. Partial abstinence started only in 1741 under Pope Benedict XIV as a concession and as part of a gradual weakening of discipline. Beforehand, days of abstinence were days of complete abstinence.

Fasting, therefore, refers to the quantity of food and the frequency of eating. Abstinence refers to what may or may not be eaten.

Calendar Notes:

1. While Partial abstinence is allowed in the rubrics in place as of 1962, it is a a modern invention and is not part of this calendar. Abstinence is always full, never partial. 

2. All Days of Lent, aside from Sundays, are days of fasting and abstinence. Sundays are days only of abstinence.

3. For Lent only, abstinence refers to all animal products (e.g., dairy, butter, eggs) in addition to meat. This includes Sundays.

4. January 22nd is in the USA only an obligatory day of penance for offenses against the dignity of human life.

5. This calendar keeps the 1954 Roman Catholic Calendar and the pre-1917 practice of anticipating Vigils on Saturday that fall on Sunday in a given year.

6. Major Fasts: Great Lent (February 18 - April 4), Apostles Fast (June 1 - June 27), Dormition Fast (Aug 1 - Aug 14), St. Martin's Lent (Nov 12 - Dec 24).

7. Dominican Specific Fasting Days: April 29, August 3, and October 6 are not on the calendar but will be observed by Dominican Tertiaries per the 1923 Rule (the last one before Vatican II). Same with all Fridays of the year, which Dominicans are asked to keep as days of fasting.

8. Days of fasting generally include all of the Major Fasts as noted above, in addition to the following days when they fall outside those periods: Ember Days, Vigils of the Apostles, and Vigils for Major Feasts. Rogation Days were often days of abstinence but not fast.

9. Before the 1830s, all Saturdays were days of abstinence except during Christmastide (in some places) and on major holidays.

10. Voluntary Saturday abstinence is omitted on current or former Holy Days of Obligation. Saturday Abstinence used to be obligatory year-round with some exceptions for days "as often as no major solemnity (e.g., Christmas) occurs on Saturday, or no infirmity serves to cancel the obligation.” One exception granted in some places was for all Saturdays of the Christmas Season to be exempted.

11. Year Round Wednesdays as days of abstinence are recommended based on the Early Church's practice of Wednesday penance (and based on the wishes of Our Lady of Mount Carmel). Abstinence year-round on Wednesdays would be commendable on all Wednesdays of the year outside of Pascaltide except for those when either a Holy Day of Obligation, Former Holy Day of Obligation, or First Class Feast falls.

12. While part of the Apostles Fast, both the Vigil of Corpus Christi and the Vigil of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist are recommended days of fasting and abstinence.

13. Exceptions for the Apostles Fast reflect both Corpus Christi and the Nativity of St. John the Baptist.

14. December 25th falling on a Friday was exempt from mandatory abstinence starting in the Middle Ages but beforehand it remained a day of mandatory abstinence.

15. Above all, this calendar goes far beyond the mere "minimums," which are virtually non-existent, and attempts to present concrete ways for Catholics to actually fast in the manner our forefathers did.

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

Digital Version:

To order a digital .ics file of the above calendar that can be easily imported into your calendar application (e.g., Outlook, Google, Apple, etc.), order below. 

The file is only $5.95. Please order it by clicking here.

After you complete the order, you will have a ZIP file. You MUST unzip that file to extract the ICS file. That ICS file can be added to the calendar application of your choice. Check out details for how easy it is to add an ICS file (after you unzip it) online.

Note that the file is a free benefit to all my Patreon members. So, if you become a patron, you will get that and many other benefits.

Read more >>

Eggs in the History of Catholic Fasting and Abstinence

Of all the changes in Catholic fasting and abstinence across the centuries, few are as striking as the regulation of eggs. Today, Catholics rarely think of eggs as a “penitential food,” but for well over a millennium they were strictly forbidden during Lent, alongside dairy and animal fat. Understanding the history of these rules helps us appreciate both the rigor of earlier generations and the cultural traditions that flowed from them as detailed in The Definite Guide to Catholic Fasting and Abstinence.

1. The Ancient and Patristic Church

Early Christian fasting was extraordinarily strict.

Dr. K.A. Heinrich Kellner records that in the ancient Church, especially in Holy Week, food was reduced to bread, salt, and water. The Apostolic Constitutions forbade flesh and wine for all of Lent and prescribed total abstinence on Good Friday and Holy Saturday. St. John Chrysostom testifies that in Antioch, no flesh was eaten during the whole of Lent. Crucially, milk and eggs (lacticinia) were also excluded as a general rule.

The Council of Trullo (692) confirmed this universality, forbidding the eating of eggs and cheese in Lent, even on Sundays, under penalty of deposition for clerics and excommunication for laymen (Canon 56).

Thus, from the earliest centuries, Lenten fasting meant abstaining not only from meat but also from dairy, eggs, and animal products.

2. Pope St. Gregory the Great and the Medieval Consensus

In 604, Pope St. Gregory the Great summarized the law succinctly: “We abstain from flesh meat and from all things that come from flesh, as milk, cheese, and eggs.”

This form endured for nearly a thousand years. Whenever fasting was observed, abstinence was also observed. Thus: Lent = no meat, no eggs, no dairy, no animal products.

By the time of St. Thomas Aquinas, the Lenten fast still forbade lacticinia, while Fridays and other non-Lenten abstinence days had already relaxed to permit dairy and eggs. This distinction became fixed: Lent retained the stricter prohibition, while non-Lenten abstinence was milder.

3. Culture and Custom

From this tradition arose beloved customs:

• Shrove Tuesday pancakes used up eggs and butter before Lent.
• Easter eggs became a festive symbol of the Resurrection precisely because they were absent for 46 days.

In some countries, exceptions were made. As Fr. Francis Weiser notes, Scandinavia was never bound to strict lacticinia abstinence because substitutes were scarce; dispensations were common, often accompanied by pious almsgiving.

Even so, the general discipline remained firm until the modern era.

4. 19th-Century Relaxations

By the 19th century, the Church had begun granting wider concessions.

In 1886, Pope Leo XIII permitted meat, eggs, and dairy on Sundays of Lent and at the main meal on every weekday except Wednesday and Friday in the United States. Holy Saturday was excluded. This marked a decisive relaxation.

Mara Morrow notes that Leo XIII also allowed eggs and dairy at the evening collation daily during Lent and permitted bread with coffee or chocolate in the morning. These mitigations were part of a broader trend: the use of lard and meat drippings was allowed, and those exempt from fasting could eat eggs and milk more than once a day.

A 1905 Irish catechism by Fr. Patrick Power still listed milk, butter, cheese, and eggs as forbidden in Lent, though he acknowledged that some countries allowed milk at collation. Dispensation varied widely by nation.

5. The 1917 Code of Canon Law

The 1917 Code decisively ended the universal prohibition of lacticinia during Lent. 

• Canon 1250: abstinence forbids meat and soups made with meat, “but not eggs, milk, and other condiments, even if taken from animals.”
• Canon 1251: mixing meat and fish in the same meal was permitted.

From this point, eggs and dairy were no longer excluded by law, even during Lent. The ancient and medieval practice was officially abrogated.

6. Mid-20th Century Clarifications

By the 1950s, theologians such as Fr. Dominic Prümmer explained the law clearly: abstinence forbade flesh meat and broth, but not eggs, dairy, or animal fats. In case of doubt, one was free to eat, since the law did not bind in uncertainty.

Thus, by mid-century, eggs were firmly reclassified as a permitted food on both fasting and abstinence days.

7. Today’s Law

Under the 1983 Code of Canon Law:

• Fasting (Ash Wednesday and Good Friday): one full meal and two smaller meals, no restriction on eggs.
• Abstinence (Fridays of Lent): no meat, but eggs fully permitted.
• Year-round Friday penance remains binding, but abstinence from eggs is nowhere in view.

8. Conclusion

For more than a millennium, the Catholic Church’s Lenten discipline excluded not only meat but also eggs and dairy. This practice, deeply rooted in the patristic and medieval Church, gave rise to traditions such as Easter eggs and Shrove Tuesday pancakes. Outside Lent, however, abstinence days rarely included eggs after the early Middle Ages.

From Pope St. Gregory the Great through St. Thomas Aquinas, lacticinia abstinence was normative in Lent. Dispensations and mitigations appeared over time, culminating in Pope Leo XIII’s late-19th-century relaxations and the 1917 Code’s universal allowance of eggs and dairy. Today, the Church’s law requires only abstinence from meat, leaving eggs entirely permitted.

Still, some Catholics voluntarily restore the older discipline of giving up eggs and dairy during Lent, rediscovering a penitential practice that once united Christendom and sanctified the approach to Easter.

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

Read more >>

2025 Traditional Catholic Fasting and Abstinence Calendar

Click for Larger Size

As a follow-up to my significant research on Traditional (Roman and Eastern) Catholic fasting and abstinence, I have put together a 2025 fasting and abstinence calendar for my devotional purposes. This is a follow-up to similar ones I created over the past several years.

Traditional Catholic Fasting Rules:

Fasting: Fasting refers to how much food we eat. It means taking only one meal during a calendar day. The meal should be an average-sized meal as overeating at the one meal is against the spirit of the fast. Fasting generally means that the meal is to be taken later in the day. Along with the one meal, up to two snacks (technically called either a collation or frustulum) are permitted. These are optional, not required. Added up together, they may not equal the size of the one meal. No other snacking throughout the day is permitted. Fasting does not affect liquids, aside from the Eucharistic Fast which is a separate matter.

Abstinence: Abstinence in this context refers to not eating meat. Meat refers to the fleshmeat of mammals or fowl. Beef, poultry, lamb, etc are all forbidden on days of abstinence. Abstinence does not currently prohibit animal byproducts like dairy (e.g. cheese, butter, milk) or eggs, but in times past they were prohibited. Fish is permitted along with shellfish and other cold-blooded animals like alligators. In times past, days of fast were always days of abstinence as well; however, not all days of abstinence were days of mandatory fasting.

Partial Abstinence: Partial Abstinence refers to eating meat only at the principal meal of the day. Days of partial abstinence do not permit meat to be eaten as part of the collation or the frustulum. Partial abstinence started only in 1741 under Pope Benedict XIV as a concession and as part of a gradual weakening of discipline. Beforehand, days of abstinence were days of complete abstinence.

Fasting, therefore, refers to the quantity of food and the frequency of eating. Abstinence refers to what may or may not be eaten.

Calendar Notes:

1. While Partial abstinence is allowed in the rubrics in place as of 1962, it is a a modern invention and is not part of this calendar. Abstinence is always full, never partial. 

2. All Days of Lent, aside from Sundays, are days of fasting and abstinence. Sundays are days only of abstinence.

3. For Lent only, abstinence refers to all animal products (e.g., dairy, butter, eggs) in addition to meat. This includes Sundays.

4. January 22nd is in the USA only an obligatory day of penance for offenses against the dignity of human life.

5. This calendar keeps the 1954 Roman Catholic Calendar and the pre-1917 practice of anticipating Vigils on Saturday that fall on Sunday in a given year.

6. Major Fasts: Great Lent (March 2 - April 16), Apostles Fast (June 16 - June 28), Dormition Fast (Aug 1 - Aug 14), St. Martin's Lent (Nov 13 - Dec 24).

7. Dominican Specific Fasting Days: April 29, August 3, and October 6 are not on the calendar but will be observed by Dominican Tertiaries per the 1923 Rule (the last one before Vatican II). Same with all Fridays of the year, which Dominicans are asked to keep as days of fasting.

8. Days of fasting generally include all of the Major Fasts as noted above, in addition to the following days when they fall outside those periods: Ember Days, Vigils of the Apostles, and Vigils for Major Feasts. Rogation Days were often days of abstinence but not fast.

9. Before the 1830s, all Saturdays were days of abstinence except during Christmastide (in some places) and on major holidays.

10. Voluntary Saturday abstinence is omitted on current (e.g., Nov 1st) or former Holy Days of Obligation (e.g., May 3rd). Saturday Abstinence used to be obligatory year-round with some exceptions for days "as often as no major solemnity (e.g., Christmas) occurs on Saturday, or no infirmity serves to cancel the obligation.” One exception granted in some places was for all Saturdays of the Christmas Season to be exempted.

11. Year Round Wednesdays as days of abstinence are recommended based on the Early Church's practice of Wednesday penance (and based on the wishes of Our Lady of Mount Carmel). Abstinence year-round on Wednesdays would be commendable on all Wednesdays of the year outside of Pascaltide except for those when either a Holy Day of Obligation, Former Holy Day of Obligation, or First Class Feast falls.

12. While part of the Apostles Fast, both the Vigil of Corpus Christi and the Vigil of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist are recommended days of fasting and abstinence

13. Above all, this calendar goes far beyond the mere "minimums," which are virtually non-existent, and attempts to present concrete ways for Catholics to actually fast in the manner our forefathers did.

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

Digital Version:

To order a digital .ics file of the above calendar that can be easily imported into your calendar application (e.g., Outlook, Google, Apple, etc.), order below. 

The file is only $5.95. Please order it by clicking here.

After you complete the order, you will have a ZIP file. You MUST unzip that file to extract the ICS file. That ICS file can be added to the calendar application of your choice. Check out details for how easy it is to add an ICS file (after you unzip it) online.

Note that the file is a free benefit to all my Patreon members. So, if you become a patron, you will get that and many other benefits.

Read more >>

List of Traditional Catholic Third Orders

The Church is comprised of many members, such as the Mystical Body of Christ. It is composed of priests, nuns, religious or ordered men and women, and lay people. Each person has a unique vocation from God. Let’s learn about many of the positions and roles in the Catholic Church hierarchy.

There are four major religious Orders in the Church, as well as many other branches. One is the Benedictines, who follow the Benedictine Rule. Their mission is “ora et labora” or work and pray. They can be either contemplative or active. Another Order is the Carmelites. They refer to themselves as the “Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.” They wear the brown scapular given by Our Lady to St. Simon Stock. They have the spirit of hermits and prefer silence and solitude. Another major Order is the Franciscans. The women’s branch is called the Poor Clares. Both are dedicated to “living the Gospel” and emphasize poverty and simplicity. Then, there are the Dominicans. They are very committed to learning and study whose mission is to share the fruit of their contemplation.

A Third Order is connected to a major Order, such as Third Order Franciscans. These individuals remain members of the laity, but they live by a rule of life (e.g., the Franciscans, Dominicans, Benedictines, etc). They may marry and have a family. But they make special promises to live in a holy way but do not make vows. They do not wear any specific clothing and go about life looking externally like an average Catholic in the pews.

During this period of crisis in the Church, committed Catholics who wish to join a Third Order that is in conformity with the Traditional Catholic Faith and not with Modernism thankfully have options. Here are some of those options:

Traditional Dominicans

There are two traditional Dominican Third Orders (i.e., The Third Order of Penance). There is a group loosely affiliated with the SSPX under Fr. Albert, which is the one that I'm a member of.  Fr. Albert, even though he has left the now-dissolved community in Belgium, still leads the SSPX-affiliated Third Order. The Third Order is very much still active with tertiaries around the country and in other non-US locations. More information can be found online.

The Resistance (i.e., SSPX-SO) has its own Third Order out of France as well. It is still very much active and going strong with tertiaries in the United States and abroad. More information can be found online. More information can be found online.

Traditional Benedictines

Since Benedict of Nursia (AD 480-547) began his monastic quest for God, ordinary Christians have sought guidance from his spiritual teachings. This led to the formation of a communal life where laypeople and secular clergy became affiliated with his communities, a tradition that persists to this day. The term 'oblate' derives from the Latin "oblatus," meaning "one who is offered." Oblates are Christians who affiliate themselves with a Benedictine community, dedicating themselves to God by striving to apply the Rule of St. Benedict to their lives as much as their circumstances allow.

The Monks of Nursia have a very active number of Oblates spread throughout the world. More information can be found online.

Traditional Franciscans

The Franciscan Third Order was established by St. Francis in 1221 to accommodate many married men, women, and diocesan clergy who wished to adopt his way of life but could not join the first or second orders. Within the Third Order of St. Francis, there is a distinction between the Third Order Regular and the Third Order Secular.

Some of these tertiaries eventually began living in communities, which evolved into a religious order that professes vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. This order is now known as the Third Order Regular (TOR). Members of these communities, whether male or female, live together according to their gender. This branch of the Franciscan Family was officially founded in 1447 by a papal decree that united several groups.

The Third Order Secular (Ordo Franciscanus Saecularis, in Latin), known as the Secular Franciscans, includes devout men and women who do not live in a religious community but lead their everyday lives in the world. Nevertheless, they regularly gather in community and profess vows, committing to live the Gospel following the example of Francis.

The Marian Friars Minor Third Order offers a traditional Catholic Franciscan option. There is also a Franciscan Third Order affiliated with the SSPX.

Traditional Carmelites

The Third Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, also known as the Lay Carmelites, is a third order of the Carmelite Order of the Ancient Observance, established in 1476 by a bull from Pope Sixtus IV. It is a community of individuals who choose to live the Gospel in the spirit of the Carmelite Order and under its guidance.

The Traditional Lay Carmelites of Fatima are one option. 

Other Traditional Options

Besides the aforementioned religious orders, the SSPX has an active Third Order, as does the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, which is known as the Confraternity of St. Peter, and the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest has its own Lay Society, which is not strictly the same as a Third Order.

Do you know of any others? Share the details below in the comments box!

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A Catholic Life Podcast: Episode 67

In today’s episode, on Trinity Sunday, I address the following:

1. Trinity Sunday
2. (6) Heresies Against the Trinity to Refute
3. Worshipping with Non-Catholics is a Mortal Sin

I would like to thank CatechismClass.com for sponsoring this episode.  CatechismClass.com, the leader in online Catholic catechism classes, has everything from online K-12 programs, RCIA classes, adult continuing education, marriage preparation, baptism preparation, confirmation prep, quince prep classes, catechist training courses, and much more. It is never too late to study the fullness of the Catholic Faith and CatechismClass.com is the gold standard in authentic Catholic formation online. During the Season after Pentecost we celebrate many incredible days: Corpus Christi, the Sacred Heart, and so much more. Save 25% with discount code Pentecost25 on their special course.   

Subscribe to the podcast on Buzzsprout, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, I-tunes, and many other platforms!

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Worshipping with Protestants Is A Mortal Sin

No one can find salvation except in the Catholic Church. Outside the Church, you can find everything except salvation. You can have dignities, you can have Sacraments, you can sing "Alleluia," answer "Amen," have the Gospels, have faith in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, and preach it, too. But never can you find salvation except in the Catholic Church - St. Augustine

There Is Only One True Religion

The Church established by our Lord Jesus Christ has always taught that organized religion is revealed by God and necessary for salvation. And the one religion revealed by God that is true, which is confirmed by both reason and countless verifiable miracles, is the Catholic Religion. There is no salvation found in any other religion. Just as there is only one God who is the only way to salvation (cf. John 14:6) there is only one religion established by Him for our salvation. Any other religion must necessarily be a false religion since its teachings contradict the Catholic religion. 

Logically speaking, there can, at most, be only one true religion. And the disunity and contradictions among the thousands of Protestant denominations violate the very principle of catholicity - not to mention apostolicity - which must be found in the true religion. With the advent of Protesantism in the 1500s, Luther stated that the Bible was open to individual interpretation, and the theological trail became crisscrossed with Biblical theorizing and harsh denunciations. Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, Anabaptists, and others all preached different pathways of what each described as the true road to salvation. None of them agreed. And none of their respective denominations agree. They all conflicted and continue to conflict with each other. Just as 1 + 1 must equal 2, it is impossible for all of the conflicting and varied protestant groups to all be true. The truth is actually found only in the Catholic Church.

Worshipping With Other Religions Is a Mortal Sin Against the First Commandment

The First Commandment enjoins us not only to believe in God and worship Him but also to trust Him and love Him, as well as to encourage others to do likewise. The Catechism of the Council of Trent explained this well when discussing the First of the 10 Commandments:

The (mandatory part) contains a precept of faith, hope and charity. For, acknowledging God to be immovable, immutable, always the same, we rightly confess that He is faithful and entirely just. Hence in assenting to His oracles, we necessarily yield to Him all belief and obedience. Again, who can contemplate His omnipotence, His clemency, His willing beneficence, and not repose in Him all his hopes? Finally, who can behold the riches of His goodness and love, which He lavishes on us, and not love Him? Hence the exordium and the conclusion used by God in Scripture when giving His commands: I, the Lord.

Next, the Catechism explains what the First Commandment forbids:

The (negative) part of this Commandment is comprised in these words: Thou shalt not have strange gods before Me. This the Lawgiver subjoins, not because it is not sufficiently expressed in the affirmative part of the precept, which means: Thou shalt worship Me, the only God, for if He is God, He is the only God; but on account of the blindness of many who of old professed to worship the true God and yet adored a multitude of gods. Of these there were many even among the Hebrews, whom Elias reproached with having halted between two sides [III Kngs xviii. 21], and also among the Samaritans, who worshipped the God of Israel and the gods of the nations [cf. IV Kngs xvii. 33].

Consequently, sins against the First Commandment include (among other things) failing to pray, failing to study the Faith, neglecting spiritual duties, taking part in the worship of non-Catholic religions, despair, presumption, idolatry, consulting fortune tellers, and observing superstitious practices like horoscopes. The Baltimore Catechism clearly reiterates this prohibition against spells and charms: “Those who make use of spells and charms, or who believe in dreams, in mediums, spiritists, fortune-tellers, and the like, sin against the First Commandment, because they attribute to creatures perfections which belong to God alone.” 

Worshiping with Protestants Is A Mortal Sin

Whispers in Restoration summarized the rationale for why active participation in non-Catholic (e.g., Protestant worship) is always forbidden. Similarly, assisting at Jewish seder meals and any other religious ceremony of non-Catholics is also strictly forbidden:

In considering the question of Catholics joining in non-Catholic worship, the constant and uniform testimony of Scripture and Tradition must be maintained: Catholics may never actively participate in non-Catholic worship. This prohibition follows chiefly from the First Commandment in light of the fact that all non-Catholic worship is false, actions standing contrary to right faith and in violation of both natural and divine law. Such acts are therefore objectively disordered, independent of the subjective culpability of those who engage in such worship.

A second, closely connected reason for this discipline is that of making a lie by demonstrating a false religious unity: for a Catholic to join in non-Catholic worship is to manifest a certain unity with that community, contradicting the true unity of the Church. This leads to a third reason of scandal: Catholics who actively engage in false worship give the objective impression that such disordered acts are permissible, even laudable, and in this way endanger right faith (on the part of Catholics) and confirm non-Catholics in their error. A final reason for this prohibition is that it involves an omission of fraternal charity: by engaging in false worship, the Catholic fails in his duty to mercifully instruct the ignorant, admonish the sinner, and share the Gospel.

It is therefore doctrinally indefensible to admit of a discipline – alien to the constant and uniform tradition of the Church – that would permit (much less encourage) the active participation of Catholics in non-Catholic worship. 

This prohibition was also clearly specified in Canon Law: “It is unlawful for the faithful to assist in any active manner, or to take part in the sacred services of non-Catholics” (1917 Code of Canon Law, Canon 1258, Paragraph 1). But this teaching long pre-dated the 1917 Code and was declared at multiple Councils:

“If any ecclesiastic or layman shall go into the synagogue of the Jews or the meeting-houses of the heretics to join in prayer with them, let them be deposed and deprived of communion. If any bishop or priest or deacon shall join in prayer with heretics, let him be suspended from communion.” (3rd Council of Constantinople, 680 AD).

“And since truth cannot contradict truth, we define that every statement contrary to the enlightened truth of the faith is totally false and we strictly forbid teaching otherwise to be permitted. We decree that all those who cling to erroneous statements of this kind, thus sowing heresies which are wholly condemned, should be avoided in every way and punished as detestable and odious heretics and infidels who are undermining the Catholic faith.” (Session 8 of the 5th Lateran Council, 1513 AD)

Several valid but non-Ecumenical councils further affirmed this same truth (along with other examples):

“No one shall pray in common with heretics and schismatics… It is not permitted to heretics to enter the house of God while they continue in heresy.” (Council of Laodicea during the 4th century, citing Canon 6)

“One must neither pray nor sing psalms with heretics, and whosoever shall communicate with those who are cut off from the communion of the Church, whether clergy or layman, let him be excommunicated.” (Council of Carthage)

Can Catholics Attend Non-Catholic Funeral or Wedding Services?

What about non-passive worship? The author from Whispers in Restoration continues by noting that even passive (i.e., non-active) attendance at non-Catholic worship (e.g., at a funeral or wedding of a non-Catholic) would be limited and one which should be considered with the prudential advice of a Catholic priest:

Furthermore, it should be noted that traditionally, if Catholics might be permitted a certain passive participation in occasions of false worship, this was admitted only if the instance was: 1) an extraordinary circumstance, 2) commended by some grave reason, and 3) not overtly scandalous. The cautious qualifications here reflect the gravity of the act in question and recognition of the fact that any form of worship is informed by the beliefs of the worshipping community, demonstrating and effecting their religious unity as well. Thus for a Catholic, even passive participation in non-Catholic worship is a question that must be weighed with great caution.

One typical example given for such potentially permissible passive participation is that of a Catholic attending the non-Catholic funeral of a close relative or friend, provided that fraternal charity truly compels it and there be no danger of scandal or harm to right faith. Even here, it is noteworthy that such participation was only ever admitted as a possibility, and on the assumption that the person was seeking the direction of legitimate pastors in good faith, in order to act well.

Conclusion

We must reject religious indifferentism and seek to win as many souls from the devil and error as possible. By keeping the First Commandment and encouraging others to become Catholic, we observe this first and foundational Commandment. As such, no Catholic may ever participate in the religious worship of any non-Catholic religion—even those of Protestants. Catholics may only actively participate in Catholic worship without exception. Even if a family member goes to such a non-Catholic place of worship, the Catholic is not permitted to join, and if he does, he commits a serious mortal sin and risks excommunication.

Read more >>

Why Catholics Must Reject IVF

Earlier this year the Alabama Supreme Court recently ruled, in an 8-1 decision, that the state's law on accidental death of a minor applies to frozen embryos, considering them as "children" under state law. The decision stemmed from a lawsuit by parents whose frozen embryos were accidentally destroyed at an in vitro fertilization clinic. The court examined the "ontological" status of these unborn children, discussing the definitions of "person" and "child" in the context of state law. The judges concluded that frozen embryos are considered "children" and that the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act applies to all children, born or unborn, without limitation. This ruling was influenced by Alabama's previous legal developments, including a 2018 constitutional amendment affirming the sanctity of unborn life and a 2019 abortion ban.

The ruling has led to consequences for In vitro fertilization (IVF), a procedure used to help individuals or couples with fertility issues to conceive a child. The process involves the fertilization of an egg with sperm outside the body in a laboratory setting. Unbeknown to many, the Catholic Church condemns IVF and Catholics are not permitted to use or support it.

IVF Involves the Deaths of Thousands of Embryos

In vitro fertilization is not permitted in the Catholic faith for any reason; instead, adoption is encouraged and there are morally acceptable options for infertile couples. According to a July 2005 issue of Newsweek, IVF costs $9,000 and only 25% of all cycles involve a live birth. It should also be noted that there is a serious though rare side effect, Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome (OHSS), that has killed patients using IVF. Through IVF, 6 million embryos, human beings like us, have died because of this procedure. That is roughly 80-90% of all embryos created in IVF. In the US, 170,000 embryos die each year. 

From a purely biological standpoint, an embryo is the early stage of development after fertilization of an egg by sperm. In human reproduction, fertilization marks the beginning of a new genetically unique organism making embryos, even in the scientific community, individual human beings with human DNA. Embryos therefore are human beings with a human soul.

IVF Separates the Unitive and Procreative Aspects of Marriage

The procreative aspect of marital relations underscores the sacred and inherent openness to the transmission of life. Sexual intimacy within marriage is viewed as a partnership with God in the act of creation, acknowledging the potential for the conception of a child. This aspect emphasizes the natural purpose of human sexuality in contributing to the ongoing generation of life and participating in the divine plan for the family. The intentional obstruction or manipulation of this procreative potential, such as through the use of artificial contraceptives, is mortally sinful.

The unitive aspect of marital relations in a Catholic context emphasizes the profound unity, mutual self-giving, and love between husband and wife. Sexual intimacy within marriage is a sacred expression of the spouses' commitment to one another, fostering emotional and spiritual closeness. This dimension recognizes the significance of the marital act in deepening the bond between partners, reflecting the selfless love that is meant to characterize the marriage. Practices that undermine the unitive aspect, such as extramarital affairs or artificial reproductive technologies that separate procreation from the marital union, seriously disrupt the intended unity and sanctity of the marital bond.

With these in mind, it is crucial to recognize that the Catholic objection to IVF extends beyond the murder of innocent human beings. Any form of insemination outside of marital intercourse is morally wrong, constituting a transgression against the dignity of the child being conceived.

Artificial Fertilization Condemned Both Inside & Outside of Marriage

In an address given on September 29, 1949, to Catholic Doctors in Rome at their 4th International Congress, Pope Pius XII delivered the following remarks on why artificial insemination is not morally permissible. And his words are crucial to make known today given the recent ruling in the State of Alabama. The Holy Father stated:

"Artificial fertilization, outside of marriage, is to be condemned outright as immoral. Such is indeed the natural law and the positive divine law, that the procreation of a new life can only be the fruit of marriage. Marriage alone safeguards the dignity of the spouses (mainly the woman in this case), their personal property. By itself, only it provides for the good and education of the child. Consequently, on the condemnation of artificial fertilization outside the conjugal union, no difference of opinion is possible between Catholics. A child conceived under these conditions would, by the very fact, be illegitimate.

"Artificial fertilization in marriage, but produced by the active element of a third party, is also immoral and, as such, to be condemned without appeal. Only the spouses have a reciprocal right over their body to engender a new life, an exclusive, non-transferable, inalienable right. And that must also be taken into consideration of the child. To anyone who gives life to a small being, nature imposes, by virtue of this bond, the burden of its conservation and education. But between the legitimate husband and the child, the fruit of the active element of a third party (the spouse was he consenting), there is no bond of origin, no moral and legal bond of conjugal procreation.

"As for the lawfulness of artificial fertilization in marriage, it suffices for us, for the moment, to recall these principles of natural law: the simple fact that the result to which we aim is achieved by this route, does not justify the use of the medium itself; nor the desire, in itself very legitimate among spouses, to have a child, is not enough to prove the legitimacy of the recourse to artificial fertilization, which would fulfill this desire.

"Let it not be forgotten: only the procreation of a new life according to the will and the plan of the Creator carries with it, to an astonishing degree of perfection, the achievement of the aims pursued. It is, at the same time, in conformity with the bodily and spiritual nature and with the dignity of the spouses, with the normal and happy development of the child."

Conclusion

The Church does not condemn scientific progress or medical interventions. However, the Catholic Church supports the responsible use of medicine and healthcare to alleviate suffering, promote health, and preserve life that is in accordance with natural law. The ethical use of medicine in line with Catholic teachings must always include respect for the sanctity of human life, recognition of the dignity of each human person, and fidelity to the natural law.

While the Church supports ethical approaches to fertility treatments, certain assisted reproductive technologies, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), are often opposed since they involve practices inconsistent with Catholic moral teachings, such as the destruction of embryos and the separation of the procreative and unitive aspects of marital relations. 

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Liturgy of the Land - Sanctify Our Land Once Again

Many people today desire a simple life that is closely connected to land, whether it be gardening, farming, or ranching. There is a spiritual draw to a non-consumeristic lifestyle that places God, the family, and the home at the center of all activity. This “agrarian conversion” has led many families to seek out rural communities and leave behind the suburban life.

Over ten years ago, two Catholic friends, Jason M. Craig and Thomas D Van Horn, experienced a similar agrarian conversion inspired by past Catholic land movements and a growing desire to work with their wives and children, going deeper than just “supporting” them financially. Both began a journey, perhaps with a tad too much romanticism, toward land-based life on farms. All these years later, the two have been tempered by the unyielding realities of land and limitations and have gained significant insights into the reasons, challenges, and possibilities of homesteading and farming. 

In The Liturgy of the Land: Cultivating a Catholic Homestead, Craig and Van Horn present the practicalities and theological aspects behind the desire for a productive, holy home. Our current culture understands the economy in efficient consumeristic terms, but our Catholic Faith tells us differently. The productive homestead is the center of economic life, and the family is at the center of the homestead. This book aims to bring the stories from their experience into a presentation and proposal of homesteading as a way of life, considering the principles (why?) and the practicalities (how?). May we do so under the patronage of St. Isidore the Farmer, who is honored in some places on March 22. And here is just one great excerpt worth meditating upon today:

Most people know that our technology-loving, post-industrial society is new. For centuries upon centuries prior—literally from the beginning of time—the work com- mon to most men the world over was finding, growing, securing, and preserving food. These acts were foundational for staying alive, but providing for bodily needs also grew into beautiful and intricate cultures where food wasn’t just important for staying alive but for living a life. This is because we, as man, must provide food like the beasts, but our work builds up into culture because we have souls. Intertwined with and sanctified by the Church, the life of prayer, work, fasting, and feasting formed a single life, an inte- grated whole. In the vast countryside of Christendom, the work of God (worship) and the work of the land was the life of the people, a single life undivided.

I was given an advanced copy of some of the text and I have to say it is quite inspiring and something I do recommend. Please check it out through Tan Books, especially as we are now in the spring season.

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Is St. Patrick's Day Traditionally Still A Fasting Day?

Definition of Fasting vs. Abstinence

Fasting refers to how much food we eat and, historically, when we eat it. It means taking only one meal during a calendar day. The meal should be an average-sized meal as overeating at the one meal is against the spirit of the fast. Fasting generally means that the meal is to be taken later in the day. Along with the one meal, up to two snacks (technically called either a collation or frustulum) are permitted. These are optional, not required. Added up together, they may not equal the size of the one meal. No other snacking throughout the day is permitted. 

Abstinence in this context refers to not eating meat. Meat refers to the fleshmeat of mammals or fowl. Beef, poultry, lamb, etc are all forbidden on days of abstinence. Abstinence does not currently prohibit animal byproducts like dairy (e.g. cheese, butter, milk) or eggs, but in times past they were prohibited. Fish is currently permitted along with shellfish and other cold-blooded animals like alligators. In times past, days of fast were always days of abstinence as well; however, not all days of abstinence were days of mandatory fasting.

The Church's Law in 1917

The days of obligatory fasting as listed in the 1917 Code of Canon Law were the forty days of Lent (including Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday until noon); the Ember Days; and the Vigils of Pentecost, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, All Saints, and Christmas. Partial abstinence, the eating of meat only at the principal meal, was obligatory on all weeks of Lent (Monday through Thursday). And of course, complete abstinence was required on all Fridays, including Fridays of Lent, except when a holy day of obligation fell on a Friday outside of Lent. Saturdays in Lent were likewise days of complete abstinence.

The Church's Law in 1962

By 1962, the laws of fasting and abstinence were as follows as described in "Moral Theology" by Rev. Heribert Jone and adapted by Rev. Urban Adelman for the "laws and customs of the United States of America" copyright 1961: "Complete abstinence is to be observed on all Fridays of the year, Ash Wednesday, the Vigils of Immaculate Conception and Christmas. Partial abstinence is to be observed on Ember Wednesdays and Saturdays and on the Vigil of Pentecost. Days of fast are all the weekdays of Lent, Ember Days, and the Vigil of Pentecost." If a vigil falls on a Sunday, the law of abstinence and fasting is dispensed that year and is not transferred to the preceding day. Father Jone adds additional guidance for the Vigil of the Nativity fast: "General custom allows one who is fasting to take a double portion of food at the collation on Christmas Eve (jejunium gaudiosum)."

History of St. Patrick's Day in Lent

    

For the Irish (and for Irish Americans), St. Patrick's Day is both a cultural milestone and, traditionally, a very significant spiritual day. Even traditional Catholics are not sure, due to conflicting information, if St. Patrick's Day was a day of fasting and abstinence during Lent on non-Fridays. Can I Eat Meat on St. Patrick's Day on a Friday in Lent is a different topic as Friday abstinence is universally mandatory and binding under pain of mortal sin.

The first record of dispensation from Lenten fast and/or abstinence on St. Patrick's Day was early in America's history at a time when all of Lent, aside from Sundays, were days of mandatory fasting for those between the ages of 21 and 60 (health exceptions aside). With the growing number of Irish immigrants to America in the early 1800s, special attention was given to dispense from fasting when St. Patrick's Day fell on a Friday. This was done for the members of the Charitable Irish Society of Boston in 1837 and would become customary in the United States. The dispensation in 1837 "was granted on the proviso that all diners gave a small sum to charity." But this was in Boston, which was an epi-center of Irish Americans.

Back in Ireland, St. Patrick's Day was a Holy Day of Obligation and still, without special dispensation, a day of mandatory fasting and abstinence. Interestingly, "The Catholic's Pocket Prayer-Book," published by Henri Proost & Co. in 1924, notes that for Australia and New Zealand, all days in Lent were days of fasting "except Sundays and St. Patrick's Day." The same pocket guide lists the days of fasting and abstinence for Ireland and lists no such exception. Yet even for Australia and New Zealand, no exception for abstinence existed on St. Patrick's Day in 1924.

Conclusion

Hence, except for Australian and New Zealand Catholics, Catholics in other countries were to still fast and abstain on St. Patrick's Day. It was only not a fasting day when it fell on a Sunday in Lent, since there is no fasting on Sundays. However, it is still possible to celebrate with Irish Soda Bread and other vegan foods.

For a separate discussion of Can I Eat Meat on St. Patrick's Day on a Friday in Lent, see that article.

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

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The Church Can Not Bless, Condone, or Sanctify Homosexual Relations

Sodom and Gomorrah afire, painting by Jacob de Wet II, 1680

The Church Calls All Men to Salvation

“Woe to you that call evil good, and good evil: that put darkness for light, and light for darkness: that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter” (Isaias 5:20).

In a seeming reversal of its 2021 prohibition against blessing any same sex couples, the Vatican’s December publication of Fiducia supplicans allegedly opened the door for priests to bless same sex couples. Bree A. Dail writes:

The new Prefect of the Doctrine of the Faith states people in “irregular” unions, such as same sex unions, may NOT receive anything resembling liturgical blessings, or blessings of their unions. They may, however, receive spontaneous blessing, limited to “the invocation of a blessing that descends from God upon those who recognizing themselves to be destitute and in need of his help do not claim a legitimation of their own status, but who beg that all that is true, good, and humanly valid in their lives and their relationships be enriched, healed, and elevated by the presence of the Holy Spirit. These forms of blessing express a supplication that God may grant those aids that come from the impulses of his Spirit what classical theology calls ‘actual grace’ —so that human relationships may mature and grow in fidelity to the Gospel, that they may be freed from their imperfections and frailties, and that they may express themselves in the ever-increasing dimension of the divine love.”

Yet, in this latest ordeal, disorder and confusion have been sowed. News headlines announced: “Pope Francis officially approved allowing priests to perform blessings on same-sex couples as long as the ritual does not resemble marriage." Those who had same-sex attraction could previously ask for blessings like anyone else who struggles with any number of sins. What this document has done is change the optics of the Church to apparently soften its stance against “gay marriage.”

While anyone may ask for a blessing, the blessing of two individuals in a known arrangement against the 6th Commandment cannot be permitted. It is as nonsensical as asking a priest to bless the building in which Planned Parenthood was killing children while stating that the blessing was just on the building and not on the evil done there. Or it would be as ludicrous as blessing the members of a KKK chapter while stating that it was just an individual blessing and did not mean anything regarding the activities the men came together to do. The blessing of two people who are regularly and publicly engaging in sodomy can not be blessed without blessing the underlying “union.”

Is the new document scandalous? Will it lead to the loss of souls?  Is it an attempt to normalize things with secular culture? Should it be opposed? Yes, to all of these. But did it change Church teaching? No, since Catholic dogma cannot change.

The 6th Commandment Recap

The sixth Commandment condemns incest (sexual relations with a relative or in-law), fornication (sexual relations with someone of the opposite sex when neither of is in the state of marriage), homosexual relations (sexual activity with someone of the same sex), masturbation (the stimulation of one’s own sexual organs for pleasure), rape, and other similar offenses. Prostitution, artificial insemination, pornography, seducing others, sexually abusing children, dressing immodestly, reading impure literature, listening to impure jokes, songs, or movies, or using artificial contraception are likewise all condemned.

Divine Law, as stated in the Commandments, does not and change not change.  Should anyone try to argue that the Scriptures themselves do not discuss homosexual activity, he should read Leviticus 18:22, which states: "Thou shalt not lie with mankind as with womankind, because it is an abomination.” 

The Church Does Not Hate Those with Same-Sex Attraction (SSA)

It is often a scapegoat in our culture that the Church hates anyone who has or has ever experienced same-sex attraction. This is false. The Church does not condemn being homosexual since some people may not be able to help their sexual orientation. What the Church forbids is homosexual activity, which is engaging in sexual acts with a person of the same sex. It is technically impossible for two people of the same sex to marry since marriage is between one man and one woman for the purpose of raising children.

Those who do experience SSA should consult the resources of Courage. Courage members are men and women who experience same-sex attractions and who have made a commitment to strive for chastity and to conform their lives to the actual and unchangeable teachings of the Catholic Church.

The Church’s Laws on Marriage

The Church likewise condemns forced marriages against a person’s will, marriages solemnized in front of non-Catholic ministers, and adulterous “second” marriages when a person’s spouse is still living since divorce is not possible.

Canon law does not prohibit Catholics from attending invalid weddings for non-Catholics but Catholics must discern if their attendance at such weddings would be a cause for scandal. And we must also think what we can do - if anything - to help that person know the Catholic Faith. It is clearer that it is not permitted to attend the wedding of a Catholic who marries outside of the Church. Likewise, it would not be appropriate to attend the alleged marriage of any same-sex couple since it is not a valid marriage, and one’s presence will undoubtedly cause scandal by seemingly approving of the event.

Let Us Invoke St. Charles Lwanga and His Companions

St. Charles Lwanga was born in 1865 in Bulimu, Buganda, Uganda. He was a servant of King Mwanga of Uganda. In 1885, he converted to Catholicism, and for that, he was burned to death in 1886 at Namugongo, Uganda, because they refused to give in to the homosexual demands of King Mwanga. Yet, St. Charles did not scream in pain as he burned to death. He even helped arrange the sticks for the fire and said he was pleased to die for the True Faith. 

St. Charles Lwanga is one of 22 people that we remember for dying for their faith in Uganda. May he intercede for all who struggle with SSA, and through his prayers, may all those who foster sin and confusion cease their errors at once.

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2024 Traditional Catholic Fasting and Abstinence Calendar

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As a follow-up to the significant research I have done regarding Traditional (Roman and Eastern) Catholic fasting and abstinence, I have put together a 2024 fasting and abstinence calendar for my devotional purposes. This is a follow-up to a similar one I did in 2022 and 2023.

Traditional Catholic Fasting Rules:

Fasting: Fasting refers to how much food we eat. It means taking only one meal during a calendar day. The meal should be an average-sized meal as overeating at the one meal is against the spirit of the fast. Fasting generally means that the meal is to be taken later in the day. Along with the one meal, up to two snacks (technically called either a collation or frustulum) are permitted. These are optional, not required. Added up together, they may not equal the size of the one meal. No other snacking throughout the day is permitted. Fasting does not affect liquids, aside from the Eucharistic Fast which is a separate matter.

Abstinence: Abstinence in this context refers to not eating meat. Meat refers to the fleshmeat of mammals or fowl. Beef, poultry, lamb, etc are all forbidden on days of abstinence. Abstinence does not currently prohibit animal byproducts like dairy (e.g. cheese, butter, milk) or eggs, but in times past they were prohibited. Fish is permitted along with shellfish and other cold-blooded animals like alligators. In times past, days of fast were always days of abstinence as well; however, not all days of abstinence were days of mandatory fasting.

Partial Abstinence: Partial Abstinence refers to eating meat only at the principal meal of the day. Days of partial abstinence do not permit meat to be eaten as part of the collation or the frustulum. Partial abstinence started only in 1741 under Pope Benedict XIV as a concession and as part of a gradual weakening of discipline. Beforehand, days of abstinence were days of complete abstinence.

Fasting, therefore, refers to the quantity of food and the frequency of eating. Abstinence refers to what may or may not be eaten.

Calendar Notes:

1. Partial Abstinence is a modern invention and is not part of this calendar. Abstinence is always full, never partial. 

2. All Days of Lent, aside from Sundays, are days of fasting and abstinence. Sundays are days only of abstinence.

3. For Lent only, abstinence refers to all animal products (e.g., dairy, butter, eggs) in addition to meat. This includes Sundays.

4. January 22nd is in the USA only an obligatory day of penance for offenses against the dignity of human life.

5. This calendar keeps the 1954 Roman Catholic Calendar and the pre-1917 practice of anticipating Vigils on Saturday that fall on Sunday in a given year.

6. Major Fasts: Great Lent (March 2 - April 16), Apostles Fast (June 3 - June 28), Dormition Fast (Aug 1 - Aug 14), St. Martin's Lent (Nov 14 - Dec 24).

7. Dominican Specific Fasting Days: April 29, August 3, and October 6 are not on the calendar but will be observed by Dominican Tertiary per the 1923 Rule (the last one before Vatican II). Same with all Fridays of the year, which Dominicans are asked to keep as days of fasting.

8. Days of fasting generally include all of the Major Fasts as noted above, in addition to the following days when they fall outside those periods: Ember Days, Vigils of the Apostles, and Vigils for Major Feasts. Rogation Days were often days of abstinence but not fast.

9. Saturday Abstinence used to be obligatory year-round with some exceptions for days "as often as no major solemnity (e.g., Christmas) occurs on Saturday, or no infirmity serves to cancel the obligation.” One exception granted in some places was for all Saturdays of the Christmas Season to be exempted.

10. Above all, this calendar goes far beyond the mere "minimums," which are virtually non-existent, and attempts to present concrete ways for Catholics to actually fast in the manner our forefathers did.

Not listed but certainly recommendable based on the Early Church's practice of Wednesday penance (and based on the wishes of Our Lady of Mount Carmel), would be to also observe abstinence year-round on Wednesdays (beyond the dates noted on the calendar). Such a practice would be commendable on all additional Wednesdays of the year with exceptions whenever either a Holy Day of Obligation, Former Holy Day of Obligation, or First Class Feast falls on Wednesday.

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

Digital Version:

To order a digital .ics file of the above calendar that can be easily imported into your calendar application (e.g., Outlook, Google, Apple, etc), order below. The file is only $3.95. I will email you the relevant .ics file within 24 hours of your order. The file will have relevant details and links with more information to help you live out the recommended traditional Catholic fasts.

The file is only $3.95. Please order it by clicking here.

After you complete the order, you will have a ZIP file. You MUST unzip that file to extract the ICS file. That ICS file can be added to the calendar application of your choice. Check out details for how easy it is to add an ICS file (after you unzip it) online.

Note that the file is a free benefit to all Patreon members. So, if you become a patron, you will get that and many other benefits.

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Lenten Observance Over Time: A Comparison of Regulations Over the Centuries

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As we prepare for another holy season of Lent, I wish to share this chart developed by Tyler Gonzalez showing the changes over time to the Lenten fast. His contributions to this chart and the subsequent annotations were invaluable. I am not aware of any such comparison ever having been created. We would do well to see in this image the great discipline of our forefathers and to rekindle some of these practices this Lent in our fasting.

Key of Terms and Annotated Citations: 

A collation is a small repast allowed originally only in the evenings of fast days. 

A frustulum is a small repast allowed originally only in the mornings on fast days. 

Xerophagiae is a diet of simple, dry, uncooked food, such as raw nuts, bread, fruits and vegetables. Fish and oil are not part of it neither are flesh and animal products. It was a precept to fast on these only during Holy Week by custom and/or decree until the time of Gregory the Great who mentions nothing of it. It may still have been a custom at that time but no mention of it is made in the decretals. 

The Passion Fast is a term which refers to the fast which began for some as early as sunset on Holy Thursday and as late as 8am on Good Friday. No one was allowed to eat any food during that time until sunset on Holy Saturday, which since most fasted for Communion extended until morning on Easter Sunday. It was often called a “40hrs Fast” and represents the original Lenten fast. For those who were to weak to follow this fast the minimum fast at this time was that of xerophagiae. 

1. Water is not allowed during the day outside of sunset repast. (Butler, Moveable Feasts, Fasts…, 1839, p.155) (C.f. AP. S. Prudentius, hymn, vi, p.188) 

2. On the Sunset Repast. (Butler, p.149) (Tertullian, De Jejun, c.x., p.549); (Weiser, Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs…, 1958, p.170)

3. When the collation was allowed by indult. (Butler, p. 149) 

4. When the collation was allowed to the laity. (Butler, p. 152) 

5. The original size of the collation. (Butler, p.152) 

6. When the collation became ¼ of a meal/8 ounces. It became ¼ of a meal in the 16th century. (Laymann, Theologia Moralis, Lib. IV, Tract. VIII, Ch. I, pp.186-187, 1630) 

7. The origin of the frustulum originated around the time of St. Alphonsus Liguori c. 18th century (The Jurist, 1952, p.188) The more common opinion is that St. Alphonsus speaks of electuaries and not a frustulum which were popular in his time. That the origins of the frustulum can be traced to his time is true as a kind of proto-frustulum. However, the greater proof lies in the claim that the frustulum was not explicitly allowed until the end of the 19th century. (Catholic Encyclopedia, Lent) 

8. Fish in Lent permitted in its simple “less dainty” form in the 7th Century. The allowance of shellfish permitted around the 10th century (Butler, Moveable Feasts, Fasts…, 1839, p.146)

9. That animal products were not had on days of abstinence. (Weiser, p.170) (Cf. Decretals of Gratian, Letter of Pope St. Gregory the Great to Saint Augustine of Canterbury, 604 AD).

10. That Sundays were days of abstinence. (Thurston, Herbert. "Lent." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 9, 1910.) 

11. The Passion Fast. (Weiser, Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs…, 1958, p.201) (Cf. The writings of Saint Irenaeus in 202 AD as quoted in The Church History of Eusebius V 24, 12; PG, 20, 502f)

12. Xerophagiae in Lent. (Butler, p.203-204) 

13. On wine in Lent. (Dom Prosper Guéranger, The Liturgical Year: Lent, 1887, p. 5) (Cf. St. Cyril of Jerusalem [Catech. iv]) 

14. On when liquids other than wine and water allowed. (St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, IIa IIae,qu.cxlvii,art.vi,ad eum.) (Rev. Antoine Villien, "A History of the Commandments of the Church", p. 315). Since liquids do not break the fast the kind of liquid and/or when it can be taken is now a non-matter. This discourse by St. Thomas was the beginning of this radical change which would not become a general custom until around the 15th century when food became allowed at the collation. Until then liquid was strictly speaking only allowed twice a day.

15. When the time of the meal changed to 3pm. (Butler, p.149) (St. Thomas, Summa Theologiae, Second Part of the Second Part, q.147, a.7) 

16. When the time of the meal changed to 12pm. (Butler, p.150) (Durandus a S. Porciano, in 4 dist., 15 quaest., 9., art. 7) 

17. When the time of the meal became a defunct matter. (CIC/17, c.1252) 

18. Not less than a second meal for collation size. (Jone, p. 263) (McHugh and Callan, pp. 3118-3119). As of 1951 the United States Conference of Bishops adopted the relative norm as the law for the US and as such now allows the collation to be more than 8 ounces. 

19. The quality of food at the collation-Fish, warm fish, animal products. (Butler, p. 153) (Metropolitan Catholic Almanac and Laity’s Directory, 1839, Baltimore.) (Villien, p. 312)

20. The consumption of both fish and flesh meat at the same meal. (Butler, p.163) 

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

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The Conventual Mass and the Traditional Eucharistic Fast

For those who are familiar with the traditional (pre-1953 rubrics forbidding even water before Holy Communion), a question arises on how this should be practiced in monasteries as well as when Mass should be offered.

The rubrics for the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass call for Mass after None on vigils and Ember days. Historically would everyone receiving communion – priests and all the ministers – observe the complete fast from all food and water (i.e., the natural fast) until then? This was a recent research topic which I helped explore.

The rubric states that the Mass must begin after None, but it does not follow that None must be celebrated at a certain hour (e.g., 3 PM). In support of this view is Canon 821 of the 1917 Code of Canon Law, which states that Mass may commence “from one hour before dawn until one hour after midday.” It, therefore, follows that the rubric could not be interpreted as mandating that the hour of None be celebrated at 3 PM and Mass afterward, since Mass was not generally allowed at that hour. While debated, it is affirmed by Rev. Heribert Jone that Regulars such as the Benedictines have the privilege of celebrating Mass two hours before dawn, two hours after midnight, and as late as 2 hours after midday, but may with a just cause celebrate Holy Mass as late as three hours after midday (“Moral Theology: Englished and Adapted to the Laws and Customs of the United States of America" published in 2009 by Newman Press, p 285).

Likewise, Father Quigley, in his 1920 work, The Divine Office A Study of the Roman Breviary states: “In the recitation, the times fixed by the Church for each hour should be observed. But the non-recital at those fixed times is never a mortal sin and is rarely a venial sin unless their postponement or anticipation is without cause.” 

In the modern age, from around the time of the Council of Trent until today, the rubric regarding the conventual Mass on some penitential days is understood as one that is anticipated. The rationale for this practice is due to the abrogation of the obligation of postponing the meal until 3 PM – or at least 12 PM – on most vigils and ember days, if not by decree, at least by contrary custom, except in the places that have kept it. Saint Robert Bellarmine attesting to this fact, said, “The ancients offered the holy mysteries between the third hour and the ninth, because on fasting days the fast was not broken until the ninth hour. But ordinarily, now the mysteries are celebrated between the first hour, that is, dawn and midday.”  

Wednesdays, Fridays, the vigils of the apostles, and other minor vigils along with the ember days outside of Lent were semi-jejunia or half-fast days in the first millennium, meaning that the fast day meal was not allowed until 3 PM. This was almost universally practiced in both the East and the West. The Pedallion, the Didache, Tertullian, and St. Basil attest to this. By the time of Pope Gregory VII at the turn of the millennium, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays were reduced to abstinence days except in those places that kept the original discipline, such as in the East on Wednesdays and Fridays and in places such as Ireland which kept the Wednesday and Friday fast and in England which kept the Friday fast. 

By the time of St. Thomas Aquinas, most places did not keep the time for fast on the ember days due to the severe relaxation of fasting discipline and yet St. Thomas expresses a wide-ranging time for Mass: “But since our Lord's Passion was celebrated from the third to the ninth hour, therefore this sacrament is solemnly celebrated by the Church in that part of the day.” Here he expounds upon the principle more clearly when he writes: 

“As already observed, Christ wished to give this sacrament last of all, in order that it might make a deeper impression on the hearts of the disciples; and therefore it was after supper, at the close of day, that He consecrated this sacrament and gave it to His disciples. But we celebrate at the hour when our Lord suffered, i.e. either, as on feast-days, at the hour of Terce, when He was crucified by the tongues of the Jews (Mark 15:25), and when the Holy Ghost descended upon the disciples (Acts 2:15); or, as when no feast is kept, at the hour of Sext, when He was crucified at the hands of the soldiers (John 19:14), or, as on fasting days, at None, when crying out with a loud voice He gave up the ghost (Matthew 27:46-50)" (Summa Theologiae III, Q. 83, a. 2, reply to objection 3)

St. Thomas hence mentions the ancient and longstanding practice that at his time was beginning to diminish due to the acquiescence to an age that cannot fast wholeheartedly.

The rubric itself is an expression of an ancient practice that goes back to the time of the Apostles and was fully developed liturgically by the onset of the patristic era. It was understood that Wednesdays, Fridays, and some other penitential days of the year, such as most vigils, were days of fast and that the meal could not be had until after 3 PM. Tertullian mentions the conjoining of this discipline with the liturgy. He says that Wednesdays and Fridays and most vigils were called semi-jejunio and station-days, which were days of half-fast, referring to the time of the meal days. These days were also ones of particular devotion where the faithful were expected to fast until None, hear Mass, and receive Communion. Holy Communion at this point was not received until after None or 3 PM.

This was practiced in most places, including Rome, and it was also practiced by St. Basil in the East. It continued to be the practice until around the turn of the millennium when the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday fasts were reduced to simple abstinence for the Roman Church by Pope Gregory VII, the aforementioned exceptions withstanding.

As a result, should traditional Catholic monks who seek to restore tradition keep the Eucharistic Fast on vigils and ember days until 3 PM? Absolutely. Should they celebrate Mass at 3 PM on those days? Absolutely. This is the ancient and longest-standing practice of the Church, which was abrogated to acquiesce to the weakness of men only in very modern times. 

Should monks also celebrate Holy Mass and fast until 3 PM on all days of Advent from the day after St. Martin on November 11th until the day before Christmas Eve inclusively? Yes. Should monks fast from everything until sunset on the major vigils (i.e., Christmas, Pentecost, Assumption) and on every day in Lent? Yes. Can Mass be said at that hour? Yes, but generally only by way of a custom against the rubrics. 

In an era when so few keep the Traditions of the Faith, and so few hear Daily Mass or pray the Divine Office, it is a comfort to know that some Orders have adopted the traditional discipline of our forefathers to restore all things in Christ. May we keep them in our prayers as they, hidden from most eyes, truly restore Christendom through their actions.

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

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