Meat on THIS Friday?

Sister Christina shares about how to make the day after Thanksgiving a special opportunity for serving others.

Along with traditionally being a day for super sales, crowded stores, early-morning lines, and an extra day off from school, the day after Thanksgiving historically has significance in the American Catholic culinary sphere as well.

I didn’t know this, but one of our Sisters clued me in (some time ago) that, in the former days of obligatory Friday abstinence from meat, this post-Turkey Day Friday was not included. A sort of indult was given to Catholics in our country for the practical reason of using up leftover turkey.

The Church truly is a prudent and loving mother!

Being born in the latter part of the twentieth century, I never knew the Fridays of required abstinence throughout the year (other than Lent and Good Friday) but found this little tidbit of information interesting.

Now that we are free to choose our form of penance (or charitable action) on Fridays and are not strictly bound to abstain from meat, this day after Thanksgiving is a perfect time to do some special act of charity as a family.

With no school today, one might take the opportunity to go to a nearby nursing home or homeless shelter to do a service project, or simply share smiles and kindness with people there.

What a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend tradition that would be!

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This day after Thanksgiving is a perfect time to do some special act of charity as a family. #CatholicMom

Editor's note: to learn more about Friday abstinence from meat and engaging in voluntary personal penance, read paragraphs 18-28 of the Pastoral Statement on Penance and Abstinence at USCCB.org.

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