SHROVE TUESDAY (MARDI GRAS or FAT TUESDAY)

What

SHROVE TUESDAY (MARDI GRAS or FAT TUESDAY)

When

2/25/2020

In some countries, the day preceding Ash Wednesday is popularly known as Shrove Tuesday. It is also frequently called Pancake Tuesday or Fat Tuesday as well as by its Latin name, Mardi Gras, which when translated from the French also means “Fat Tuesday.”

 

But it is the name “Shrove” that shows its religious origins. Shrove is the past tense of the English verb “Shrive” which means to obtain absolution for one’s sins by way of confession and by doing penance.  With Shrove Tuesday taking place before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday, it was the day when Christians were encouraged to go to confession in preparation for the penitential season that would end 40 days and 40 nights later with Easter Sunday.

 

Dating back to 1000 AD, over the years Shrove Tuesday not only became a day for Confession but a time for Catholics to feast on eggs, sugar and dairy which are traditionally restricted during the Lenten fast.  Not only was Shrove Tuesday a last chance to gorge on such foods but it was also a way to use them up before the fast began.

 

While Shrove Tuesday remains an important day of observance for Catholics and Christians to prepare for Lent and the Lenten fast, Mardi Gras carnivals have become secular free-for-alls and have little to do with the liturgical calendar or the Christian faith.

 

To celebrate Shrove Tuesday, make up a batch of pancakes. Find a basic recipe which you can embellish by adding chocolate or by serving with maple syrup, strawberry puree, and whipped cream, or with a good squeeze of lemon and a sprinkling of sugar.