Wednesday 11 May 2011

Fish anyone

On Friday evening after doing battle with the Triplex, singing Vespers and before returning for Q&A and Compline, about 10 of us adjourned to a nearby pub.

When the waiter came to take the order, round the table it went:

Salmon en croute (for we were in a fairly flash bit of London.)
Salmon en croute
Salmon en croute
Salmon en croute
Salmon en croute
Fish and chips (rebel)
Salmon en croute
Salmon en croute
Vegetable tart
....

3 comments:

Seth said...

But it's Eastertide!

leutgeb said...

Um I have no pretensions to knowing the correct answer.

In England and Wales you don't have to abstain from meat on Friday, unless it's Good Friday anyway, though lots of people do abstain.

My Transalpine Redemptorist calendar has a helpful pic of a fish on such days and that included last Friday, I think...

Ask a Priest, read a book, I'm just relating an amusing incident of unspoken Catholic solidarity, all too infrequent in the centre of London where most people are getting drunk of a Friday night, not having a quick bite to eat before rehearsing and singing Compline.

Society of St. Bede said...

As one of those dining,
Traditionally the Roman Church has abstained from meat on fridays, I believe Christmas day was the only exception and even that is later exception.

I quite understand the Eastern Rites and the idea that it is pointless to abstain on a Feast day, but of course they largely follow a more frugal Lent and Advent, as the Roman Rite did at one time.

The new code of canon law would have been an improvement if they had kept and reinforced the Fasts. How can a Feast be a feast if you have not done any special penance (abstinence / fasting etc.)

I and many other Catholic choose to follow the Tradition of the Church.