Shrovetide

This article is about the liturgical period. For the festive season during the same time, see Carnival.
During Shrovetide, and especially on Shrove Tuesday, many Christians confess their sins, in preparation for the somber season Lent. Shown is an Evangelical Lutheran confessional in Luther Church, Helsinki, Finland

Shrovetide is the Christian liturgical period prior to the start of Lent that begins on Shrove Saturday and ends at the close of Shrove Tuesday.[1][2] The season focuses on examination of conscience and repentance before the Lenten fast.[3][4] It includes Shrove Saturday, Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday and Shrove Tuesday.[1][2]

During Shrovetide, Christians used up ingredients used to make rich foods, inclusive of meat, eggs, lacticinia and alcohol as these things were not enjoyed during the 40-day fasting season of Lent—a practice that continues in Eastern Christianity and among Western Christian congregations practicing the Daniel Fast.[5][6][7][8]

Etymology

The expression "Shrovetide" comes from the word shrive, referring to the receiving of absolution following confession.[9][10]

Observances

Many Christian congregations celebrate Shrovetide through pancake breakfasts, which are held on Shrove Monday or Shrove Tuesday.
Church bells of Catholic, Lutheran and Anglican congregations ring on Shrove Tuesday (the Shriving Bell) reminding the faithful to confess their sins on Shrove Tuesday

The Shrovetide season focuses on examination of conscience and repentance before the Lenten fast.[3][4] As such, during Shrovetide, many traditional Christians, such as Roman Catholics, Lutherans and Anglicans, "make a special point of self-examination, of considering what wrongs they need to repent, and what amendments of life or areas of spiritual growth they especially need to ask God's help in dealing with."[11][12] The 11th century Ecclesiastical Institutes enjoined: "In the week immediately before Lent everyone shall go to his confessor and confess his deeds and the confessor shall so shrive him as he then may hear by his deeds what he is to do [in the way of penance]".[3] Participation in confession and absolution is therefore paradigmatic of Shrovetide, especially Shrove Tuesday.[13][14]

It is customary for Christians during Shrovetide to ponder what Lenten sacrifices they will make for Lent.[15][3] While making a Lenten sacrifice, it is customary to pray for strength to keep it for the 40-day fasting season of Lent; many often wish others for doing so as well, e.g. "May God bless your Lenten sacrifice."[16][17]

Many churches place a basket in the narthex during Shrovetide to collect the previous year's Holy Week palm branches that were blessed and distributed during the Palm Sunday liturgies. On Shrove Tuesday, churches burn these palms to make the ashes used during the services held on the very next day, Ash Wednesday.[18]

During the liturgical season of Lent, believers have historically abstained from rich foods such as meat, eggs, lacticinia (dairy products), and alcohol—a practice that continues in Eastern Christianity (in denominations such as the Coptic Orthodox Church) and among Western Christian congregations practicing the Daniel Fast.[6][7][8] Shrovetide provided Christians with the opportunity to use up these foods prior to the start of the 40-day fasting season of Lent.[5][19][20] Prior to the 6th century, Lent was normatively observed through the practice of the Black Fast, which enjoins fasting from food and liquids, with the allowance of one vegetarian meal after sunset.[19][21] The tradition of pancake breakfasts during Shrovetide, as well as that of pancake races, owes itself to this practice of "using up the surplus eggs, milk and butter" prior to Lent.[5][22] In many Christian parish churches, both Protestant and Roman Catholic, a popular Shrove Tuesday tradition is the ringing of the church bells (on this day, the toll is known as the Shriving Bell) "to call the faithful to confession before the solemn season of Lent" and for people to "begin frying their pancakes".[23][24][25]

As such, a hallmark of Shrovetide is the opportunity for a last round of merrymaking associated with Carnival and Fastelavn before the start of the somber Lenten season; the traditions of carrying Shrovetide rods and consuming Shrovetide buns after attending church are celebrated.[26][27]

Lutheran countries such as Denmark mark Shrove Sunday (Quinquagesima Sunday) as the peak of the Fastelavn.[26] After attending the Mass on Shrove Sunday, congregants enjoy Shrovetide buns (fastelavnsboller), "round sweet buns that are covered with icing and filled with cream and/or jam."[26] Children often dress up and collect money from people while singing.[26] They practice a tradition of hitting a barrel, which represents fighting Satan. After doing this, children enjoy the sweets inside the barrel.[26] Lutheran Christians in these nations carry Shrovetide rods (fastelavnsris), which "branches decorated with sweets, little presents, etc., that are used to decorate the home or give to children."[26]

References

  1. ^ a b O'Connor, Kevin (1 January 2006). Culture and Customs of the Baltic States. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 95. ISBN 9780313331251. As the culmination of the four-day meat-eating period known as Shrovetide, Shrove Tuesday is the last day before Lent, a period of fasting that begins on Ash Wednesday and lasts for 40 days until Easter.
  2. ^ a b Barrow, Mandy (2013). "Shrovetide". Project Britain. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d Kosloski, Philip (7 February 2018). "What is Shrovetide?". Aleteia. Retrieved 7 April 2024. Over time the English word Shrovetide was assigned to the final days before Ash Wednesday and best summarizes the primary focus of these days. It comes from the Middle English word shrive, meaning "to confess." According to an 11th-century text, "In the week immediately before Lent everyone shall go to his confessor and confess his deeds and the confessor shall so shrive him as he then may hear by his deeds what he is to do [in the way of penance]." In other words, Shrovetide was a special time of spiritual preparation where Christians examined their lives and confessed their sins. Lent was a time to perform various penances to atone for those sins confessed during Shrovetide and turn away from them through prayer and self-denial.
  4. ^ a b Stephens, Valerie (2016). Basic Philosophy. p. 21. ISBN 978-1329951747. Then there is Shrove Tuesday, which is the day observed before Ash Wednesday or Lent. Shrove Tuesday derives from the days when the earliest practising Christians would repent of their sins and be "shriven" or pardoned.
  5. ^ a b c Campbell, Georgina (May 2005). The Best of Irish Breads and Baking: Traditional, Contemporary and Festive. Georgina Campbell Guides. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-903164-15-0. Until relatively recently, the Lenten fast was taken so seriously in Ireland that it meant abstaining not only from meat but also eggs and all milk products. The tradition of making pancakes on Shrove Tuesday (the day before Ash Wednesday) came about as a practical way of using up the surplus eggs, milk and butter which would otherwise go to waste. Most Irish families still make pancakes on Shrove Tuesday and the tradition of tossing pancakes not only survives but actually thrives, providing voter-friendly photo opportunities for politicians and commercial opportunities for the catering trade.
  6. ^ a b Samaan, Moses (9 April 2009). "The Meaning of the Great Lent". Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Los Angeles, Southern California, and Hawaii. Retrieved 10 March 2024. The Church teaches us to fast until sunset. Fish is not allowed during this period. Also married couples should refrain from physical relations to give themselves time for fasting and prayer (1 Cor. 7: 5). We would like to emphasize the importance of the period of strict abstention during fasting. It is refraining from eating and drinking for a period of time, followed by eating vegetarian food. ... True fasting must be accompanied by abstention from food and drink until sunset as designated by the Church.
  7. ^ a b "Lent: Daniel Fast Gains Popularity". HuffPost. Religion News Service. February 7, 2013. Retrieved December 30, 2018. In some cases, entire churches do the Daniel Fast together during Lent. The idea strikes a chord in Methodist traditions, which trace their heritage to John Wesley, a proponent of fasting. Leaders in the African Methodist Episcopal Church have urged churchgoers to do the Daniel Fast together, and congregations from Washington to Pennsylvania and Maryland have joined in.
  8. ^ a b Hinton, Carla (20 February 2016). "The Fast and the Faithful: Catholic parish in Oklahoma takes up Lenten discipline based on biblical Daniel's diet". The Oklahoman. Retrieved 27 March 2022. Many parishioners at St. Philip Neri are participating in the Daniel fast, a religious diet program based on the fasting experiences of the Old Testament prophet Daniel. ... participating parishioners started the fast Ash Wednesday (Feb. 10) and will continue through Holy Saturday, the day before Easter Sunday.
  9. ^ Kane, Paul (15 December 2023). "Pancake Day facts!". National Geographic. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
  10. ^ Melitta Weiss Adamson; Francine Segan (2008). Entertaining from Ancient Rome to the Super Bowl. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0313086892.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ Thaler, Shmuel (26 February 2020). "Lunch marks beginning of Lent". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Retrieved 8 March 2021. Shrove Tuesday is observed by many Christians, including Anglicans, Lutherans, Methodists and Roman Catholics who make a special point of self-examination, of considering what wrongs they need to repent, and what amendments of life or areas of spiritual growth they especially need to ask God's help in dealing with.
  12. ^ Walker, Katie (7 March 2011). "Shrove Tuesday inspires unique church traditions". Daily American. Archived from the original on 14 February 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2016. Many local churches will celebrate Shrove Tuesday tomorrow, a day of feasting commonly known as "pancake day." Shrove Tuesday is typically observed by Episcopal, Lutheran, Methodist and Catholic denominations, but each church celebrates the day in its own, unique way. The Rev. Lenny Anderson of the St. Francis-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church in Somerset said the primary focus of Shrove Tuesday is to prepare for Lent, the period of the liturgical year leading up to Easter.
  13. ^ "Special events, services for Shrove Tuesday, Ash Wednesday". The Northwest Florida Daily News. 28 February 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2024. Our Savior Lutheran Evangelical Church in Crestview will host a dinner on March 4 after confession and absolution service beginning at 6 p.m. Pancakes and Wisconsin sausage will be served in commemoration of Shrove Tuesday. Everyone is welcome to join in receiving the season's blessing in preparation for Lent.
  14. ^ "Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday Services". Lebanon Lutheran Church. 6 February 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  15. ^ Kelvey, Jon (13 February 2018). "Strawbridge United Methodist keeps Shrove Tuesday pancake tradition". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
  16. ^ "What is Shrove Tuesday? Meaning, Traditions, and 2021 Date". Christianity.com. Retrieved 16 February 2021. While undergoing a Lenten sacrifice, it is helpful to pray for strength; and encouraging fellow Christians in their fast saying, for example: "May God bless your Lenten sacrifice."
  17. ^ "Prayer for Lenten Sacrifice". Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield–Cape Girardeau. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  18. ^ "Shrove Tuesday". The Times-Reporter. 18 February 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  19. ^ a b Butler, Alban (1839). The Moveable Feasts, Fasts, and Other Annual Observances of the Catholic Church. Dublin: James Duffy. p. 144-146. The primitive Christians in Lent broke their fast only after sunset, and then usually only with herbs, roots, and bread. At least all were obliged to abstain not only from flesh meat, but also from fish, and whatever had life; also whatever is derived from flesh, as eggs, milk, cheese, butter, according to the ancient canon. Likewise from wine, which in the primitive ages was no less forbidden on all fasting days than the use of flesh meat itself ... Some mitigations were introduced in part of abstinence in the sixth century ... Fish was in the same age allowed, but not of the dearer and more dainty kinds.
  20. ^ Butler, Alban (1774). The Moveable Feasts, Fasts, and Other Annual Observances of the Catholic Church. C. Kiernan. p. 257. It is undoubted, that anciently to drink on fasting days was no less forbid than to eat, only in the refection after sunset.
  21. ^ Butler, Alban (1774). The Moveable Feasts, Fasts, and Other Annual Observances of the Catholic Church. C. Kiernan. p. 257. It is undoubted, that anciently to drink on fasting days was no less forbid than to eat, only in the refection after sunset.
  22. ^ Collins, Tony; Martin, John; Vamplew, Wray (2005). Encyclopedia of Traditional British Rural Sports. Psychology Press. p. 202. ISBN 978-0415352246. The association between pancakes and Shrove Tuesday appears to have its origins in the fact that the pancakes used up food such as butter, eggs and fat that were prohibited during Lent, which begins the following day on Ash Wednesday. ... Pancakes have been eaten on Shrove Tuesday since at least the sixteenth century. In some parishes, it was the custom for the church bell to ring at noon as the signal for people to begin frying their pancakes.
  23. ^ "What Is the Meaning and History of Shrove Tuesday?". Christianity.com. 13 February 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024. In many Protestant and Roman Catholic Christian churches, a popular Shrove Tuesday ritual is the ringing of the church bells (on this day, known as the Shriving Bell) "to call the faithful to confession before the solemn season of Lent" and for people to "begin frying their pancakes."
  24. ^ Cocks, Alfred Heneage (1897). The church bells of Buckinghamshire: their inscriptions, founders, and uses, and traditions; &c. Jarrold & sons. p. 276.
  25. ^ Pulleyn, William (1828). The Etymological Compendium, Or Portfolio of Origins and Inventions. Richard Griffin and Company. p. 192.
  26. ^ a b c d e f "Shrovetide". Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  27. ^ Beadle, Richard (17 March 1994). The Cambridge Companion to Medieval English Theatre. Cambridge University Press. p. 69. ISBN 9780521459167. One of these was the pre-Lent Carnival extravaganza of Shrovetide, though this seems to have been celebrated to a much lesser extent in Britain than it was (and still is) on the continent: however, we know of English Shrovetide plays, and Mankind bears signs of being one of them (335).