![]() In the third century, Christians in Rome began to designate some of these days for seasonal prayer, partly in imitation of the Hebrew custom and partly in response to pagan festivals occurring around the same time. 3 The Wednesday and Friday fast were so much a part of Christian life that in Gaelic one word for Thursday, Didaoirn, literally means “the day between the fasts.” fasted every Wednesday and Friday: Wednesday because it is the day that Christ was betrayed and Friday because it is the day He was crucified. The Didache, a work so old that it may actually predate some books of the New Testament, tells us that Palestinian Christians in the first century A.D. 18:12).Įarly Christians amended both of these customs. In addition to these seasonal observances, pious Jews in Palestine at the time of Jesus fasted every Monday and Thursday-hence the Pharisee’s boast about fasting twice weekly in the parable involving him and the publican (Lk. ![]() The Old Testament prescribes a fourfold fast as part of its ongoing consecration of the year to God (Zech. The history of the Ember days brings us to the very origins of Christianity. But the English name is probably derived from their Latin title, the Quatuor Tempora or “Four Seasons.” 2 Apostolic and Universal It is the association of fasting and penance with the Embertides that led some to think that their peculiar name has something to do with smoldering ash, or embers. One proof of their antiquity is that they are one of the few days in the Gregorian rite (as the ’62 Missal is now being called) which has as many as five lessons from the Old Testament in addition to the Epistle reading, an ancient arrangement indeed.įasting and partial abstinence during the Ember days were also enjoined on the faithful from time immemorial until the 1960s. Each day has its own proper Mass, all of which are quite old. In the 1962 Missal the Ember days are ranked as ferias of the second class, weekdays of special importance that even supersede certain saints’ feasts. Finally, summer heralds the Whitsun Embertide, which takes place within the Octave of Pentecost. 1 Winter, on the other hand, brings the December Embertide during thethird week of Advent, and spring brings the Lenten Embertide after the first Sunday of Lent. Autumn brings the September Embertide, also called the Michaelmas Embertide because of their proximity to the Feast of St. The Ember days, which fall on a Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday of the same week, occur in conjunction with the four natural seasons of the year. So why care about them now? To answer this question, we must first determine what they are. And long before the opening session of the Second Vatican Council, the popularity of these observances had atrophied. ![]() ![]() Most only have the privilege of assisting at a Sunday Tridentine Mass, and hence the Ember days-which occur on a weekday or Saturday-slip by unnoticed. Traditionalists, however, are not entirely to blame for their unfamiliarity with this important part of their patrimony. He replied (with an impish twinkle in his eye) that he hadn’t a clue, but he was furious they had been suppressed. I once asked a priest who had just finished beautifully celebrating an Ember Saturday Mass about the meaning of the Ember days. A potential danger of traditionalism is the stubborn defense of something about which one knows little.
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