Abstinence Does Not Equal Boring Food (M4M)
March 10, 2023+JMJ+
Blessings!
I hope your Lent is going well! I found this old post that I had published in Maidens for Mary several years back while I was finishing up my post on Byzantine fasts. So since we're in Lent, I thought I would share it with you all!
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During this season of Lent, I wanted to write a post about abstinence and some ways that people can observe it. I know that there are several myths about it, but there is one that I wish to address today: the myth that abstinence equals boring food. And that is simply not true!
There are various forms of abstinence that the Church has implemented over the centuries:
1. Dry foods only. This was only in monastic communities, in antiquity.
2. Traditional abstinence that only allowed grains, nuts, fruits, and vegetables.
3. Current abstinence that allows dairy, eggs and seafood/fish to be consumed.
Because of the mercy of the Church, we have a lot of options available to us to make suitable meals without sacrificing nutritional needs. There is no need to have fish sticks every Friday. But even with traditional abstinence, there are a lot of options. When I observe traditional abstinence, I explore different cultural preparations of grains and vegetables to keep it interesting.
Below are some meal suggestions for Friday Abstinence, broken up into various categories. This is not an exhaustive list, so feel free to explore other options!
Seafood
1. Fish
Fish is a big part of my diet, which I'll explain down below. One fish that we use a lot is tuna. With tuna, you can do the following: chowder, tuna melts, tuna salad, and tuna burgers, to name a few variations.
I also recommend salmon, catfish, perch, trout, bass, flounder, tilapia, halibut, and grouper. The only fish that I would not recommend fully is bluefish.
I usually have my fish baked, which can have a variety of spices with it. I personally like to use citrus with mine. There is also the fried fish, or even boiled fish (boiled halibut with sugar and salt is really good). I've even made fish tacos!
2. Shellfish
Shellfish can also be expensive, depending on how far from the coast you are, and can be difficult to cook. However, that shouldn't stop you from trying shrimp, clams, oysters, mussels, scallops, crab, or lobster. Unless you happen to be cursed with a shellfish allergy like I do *cries*.
2. Calamari
Which is squid, in case anyone was wondering. It's really good, trust me. I really like it fried, but there are other variations, I'm sure.
Veggie Dishes
1. Chinese Style Stir-fried vegetables over Rice
Many vegetables can be stirfried successfully, including broccoli, peppers, and squash. Chinese vegetables like water chestnuts and bok choy are also really good too. Flavor them with ginger, soy sauce and other spices to create a punch!
2. Salads
Salads can have many different ingredients. No two salads have to be identical. Ingredients that I put in my salads include: lettuce, purslane, spinach, bok choy, celery, cucumber, radishes, peas, corn, carrots, peppers, dried cranberries, cheese, and occasionally raisins. Other vegetables such as tomatoes, beans and other legumes may also be considered.
3. Boiled root crop vegetables
My grandfather introduced me to this idea. He would take turnips, parsnips, carrots and potatoes, boil them all, and mash them into a beautifully tasting puree. I recently did this for part of a Lenten meal, and I highly recommend.
Eggs
1. Egg salad
I have this for breakfast fairly frequently. Not only laden with good fats but a high source of protein and energy!
2. Quiches
I admit that I haven't done much with these, but I've seen others make them with great success!
3. Breakfast for dinner
Scrambled, poached, fried, hard-boiled, soft-boiled...the list on how to prepare eggs is extensive. Like with veggies, if you're sick of having it one way, try another!
4. (NEW): Omelets
I have just started to perfect the art of omelet making. You'll have to skip the meat, of course, but there are plenty of cheese and veggie omelets to make!
1. Spaghetti
It may seem weird without the meatballs, but I use it as a side dish to a lot of different meals. Just don't forget to use either a traditional mariana, or a 3 cheese sauce!
2. Pizza
No sausage, pepperoni or meatlovers pizzas allowed, but there is always green pepper, veggie pizzas as well as the old standby: cheese pizza.
3. Other Pasta dishes
One of my families mainstay Friday meals is baked ziti, with riccotta and mozzerella cheese. There is also fetticine alfredo, cheesy or veggie lasagnas (I highly recommend Stouffers Veggie Lasagna!), tortelini, mac and cheese, stuffed shells, ravioli, and so much more!
1. Fish Soups
This usually takes the form of either seafood gumbos, or chowders such as clam or tuna chowder. I highly recommend the latter, especially Life Currents' version of it, which you can find HERE.
2. Veggie Soups
While this immediately brings to mind various tomato based veggie soups, there are others. Corn chowder is really excellent (although you will miss the bacon), and I've even made a vegetarian chili that I really like.
So, people may be wondering....how do you get such a variety in your meals?
I must admit, it is with lots of practice. Like most Traditional Catholics, I abstain from meat on almost all Fridays.
Why do I do this? Wasn't that practice removed at Vatican II?
Indeed, the penalty of sin was removed. Lent is the only time in which abstinence is still mandatory.
In reality, Canon Law still states that we must observe some form of penance on all Fridays of the year. In most cases, this takes the form of extra prayers or personal penances. The USCCB even goes as far as to call Friday a "mini Lent". For more information, I would recommend The Pastoral Statement on Penance and Abstinence, which you can find HERE.
Is abstaining from meat on all Fridays an extraordinary penance? The modern Church seems to think so, because meat is so commonplace (USCCB). Yet, wouldn't it be more of a pleasing penance if we observed this "mini Lent" by giving up an ordinary thing that gives us pleasure? I certainly am more likely to forget say an extra chaplet or pray the Seven Sorrows devotion. Whereas, the abstaining from meat is a visible sign of penance and one that is most likely to be remembered.
And, abstinence is one of those great works in which demonic activity can be eliminated. If we are serious about our Faith and the preservation of our souls, we need to be soldiers or shields of Christ.
So I challenge you, my fellow Catholics, to use Lent as a jump-start to further your journey to successful abstinence and to even start keeping the "mini-Lents". Your sacrifices to God are never in vain, so do not be discouraged!
In corde Mariae,
Italian Fare
1. Spaghetti
It may seem weird without the meatballs, but I use it as a side dish to a lot of different meals. Just don't forget to use either a traditional mariana, or a 3 cheese sauce!
2. Pizza
No sausage, pepperoni or meatlovers pizzas allowed, but there is always green pepper, veggie pizzas as well as the old standby: cheese pizza.
3. Other Pasta dishes
One of my families mainstay Friday meals is baked ziti, with riccotta and mozzerella cheese. There is also fetticine alfredo, cheesy or veggie lasagnas (I highly recommend Stouffers Veggie Lasagna!), tortelini, mac and cheese, stuffed shells, ravioli, and so much more!
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| My first Tuna Chowder Copyright: Catherine Hawthorn |
Meatless Soups
1. Fish Soups
This usually takes the form of either seafood gumbos, or chowders such as clam or tuna chowder. I highly recommend the latter, especially Life Currents' version of it, which you can find HERE.
2. Veggie Soups
While this immediately brings to mind various tomato based veggie soups, there are others. Corn chowder is really excellent (although you will miss the bacon), and I've even made a vegetarian chili that I really like.
So, people may be wondering....how do you get such a variety in your meals?
I must admit, it is with lots of practice. Like most Traditional Catholics, I abstain from meat on almost all Fridays.
Why do I do this? Wasn't that practice removed at Vatican II?
Indeed, the penalty of sin was removed. Lent is the only time in which abstinence is still mandatory.
In reality, Canon Law still states that we must observe some form of penance on all Fridays of the year. In most cases, this takes the form of extra prayers or personal penances. The USCCB even goes as far as to call Friday a "mini Lent". For more information, I would recommend The Pastoral Statement on Penance and Abstinence, which you can find HERE.
Is abstaining from meat on all Fridays an extraordinary penance? The modern Church seems to think so, because meat is so commonplace (USCCB). Yet, wouldn't it be more of a pleasing penance if we observed this "mini Lent" by giving up an ordinary thing that gives us pleasure? I certainly am more likely to forget say an extra chaplet or pray the Seven Sorrows devotion. Whereas, the abstaining from meat is a visible sign of penance and one that is most likely to be remembered.
And, abstinence is one of those great works in which demonic activity can be eliminated. If we are serious about our Faith and the preservation of our souls, we need to be soldiers or shields of Christ.
So I challenge you, my fellow Catholics, to use Lent as a jump-start to further your journey to successful abstinence and to even start keeping the "mini-Lents". Your sacrifices to God are never in vain, so do not be discouraged!
In corde Mariae,
Catherine
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