EMBER WEEK

Anyone remember ember days?

No, and I am a cradle Catholic!!

I'm late to the party for today but will fast for the rest!

I remember Ember Days (and Rogation Days) in the Episcopal Church!

In many ways (before they ran off the rails theologically), the High Church segment of the Episcopalians was indeed "more Roman than Rome," at least after the American bishops took advantage of VCII.

I remember them! I don't recall that the priest always explained them very well (at the time, I was never very clear on their actual purpose), but they were in the missal and people knew that they were fast days, somehow related to the seasons.

Anyone remember ember days?

I have never heard of ember days before. I am saddened sometimes by what has been stolen from us by these "reforming" bishops.

From New Advent

Ember days (corruption from Lat. Quatuor Tempora, four times) are the days at the beginning of the seasons ordered by the Church as days of fast and abstinence. They were definitely arranged and prescribed for the entire Church by Pope Gregory VII (1073-1085) for the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday after 13 December (S. Lucia), after Ash Wednesday, after Whitsunday, and after 14 September (Exaltation of the Cross). The purpose of their introduction, besides the general one intended by all prayer and fasting, was to thank God for the gifts of nature, to teach men to make use of them in moderation, and to assist the needy. The immediate occasion was the practice of the heathens of Rome. The Romans were originally given to agriculture, and their native gods belonged to the same class. At the beginning of the time for seeding and harvesting religious ceremonies were performed to implore the help of their deities: in June for a bountiful harvest, in September for a rich vintage, and in December for the seeding; hence their feriae sementivae, feriae messis, and feri vindimiales. The Church, when converting heathen nations, has always tried to sanctify any practices which could be utilized for a good purpose. At first the Church in Rome had fasts in June, September, and December; the exact days were not fixed but were announced by the priests. The "Liber Pontificalis" ascribes to Pope Callistus (217-222) a law ordering: the fast, but probably it is older. Leo the Great (440-461) considers it an Apostolic institution. When the fourth season was added cannot be ascertained, but Gelasius (492-496) speaks of all four. This pope also permitted the conferring of priesthood and deaconship on the Saturdays of ember week--these were formerly given only at Easter. Before Gelasius the ember days were known only in Rome, but after his time their observance spread. They were brought into England by St. Augustine; into Gaul and Germany by the Carlovingians. Spain adopted them with the Roman Liturgy in the eleventh century. They were introduced by St. Charles Borromeo into Milan. The Eastern Church does not know them. The present Roman Missal, in the formulary for the Ember days, retains in part the old practice of lessons from Scripture in addition to the ordinary two: for the Wednesdays three, for the Saturdays six, and seven for the Saturday in December. Some of these lessons contain promises of a bountiful harvest for those that serve God.

I remember my mother talking about it when I was still in school in the years after Vat II, and that was a while ago, and I remember her wondering why no one really commemorated it or even mentioned it anymore. I hadn't actually even thought about Ember week in a long time. Wow. I'm glad you posted it! Thank you.

I remember them! I don't recall that the priest always explained them very well (at the time, I was never very clear on their actual purpose), but they were in the missal and people knew that they were fast days, somehow related to the seasons.

We must be from the same generation :-)

Like you, I remember the term "ember days" and the priest and nuns discussing them but no one in my family actually practiced them.

Thank you! It is comforting to know that I am not alone in these memories.

I have never heard of ember days before. I am saddened sometimes by what has been stolen from us by these "reforming" bishops.

Nothing has been stolen. Livius and I both remember the term but don't recall anyone actually celebrating these.

When, 5 years ago, I first arrived at the shores of FR, I stumbled upon a catholic thread where someone commented that "meatless Fridays" were still the norm and had not changed. Well, having personally lived through the era of transformation, I searched the web in order to set this poster straight. What I discovered in the process, amazed me. The poster was correct! Nothing had changed! What apparently happened is that the news media (a/k/a the msm) back then, reported that the Catholic Church now allowed catholics to consume meat on Fridays. They failed to report the details surrounding this announcement, i.e. that a catholic could substitute another form of penance in lieu of giving up meat, on Fridays. What catholics recall from those days is that they could now consume meat on Fridays.

This discovery was truly a rude and personal awakening for me. I recalled watching the news the night of that announcement and thereafter abandoning 'meatless' Fridays. With this new revelation, a personal challenge had been posed. In reflecting upon the rationale behind the bishops' decision, I was now positioned to make one for myself. From that day forward, I humbly chose to return to meatless Fridays.

In posting this thread, you have now been provided with some additional information from the history of the Latin Church. The choice is a personal one and left up to you. Now that you know about 'Ember Days', you may choose to follow them or relegate them to the dustbin of history in the Roman Catholic Church. The choice is yours and yours alone. There is no need for fanfare or penance. You were not aware of this historical celebration but now you are. You may now choose to celebrate these days, "from the heart" or disregard them as an historical remnant from the past.

In passing, let me comment that in the Maronite (and most of the Eastern Catholic Churches), both Friday and Wednesday are days of abstinence. Christ was curcified on Wednesday and it is widely accepted in the East that our Blessed Mother died on a Wednesday, worthy of abstinence. These are personal decisions, not dictated by the Catholic Church. As our dearly beloved brothers in the Orthodox Church will tell you, fast and abstinence are strongly encouraged in the East. What is tragic, is that these forms of personal penance are no longer encouraged in the West. Though the rationale may well be that this must come from the heart, which heart can make such a choice if not provided the historical view?

Ember Days

The Fast of Quarter-Tense [Ember Days, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday]

EMBER WEEK

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I remember my mother talking about it when I was still in school in the years after Vat II, and that was a while ago, and I remember her wondering why no one really commemorated it or even mentioned it anymore. I hadn't actually even thought about Ember week in a long time.

Amazing! Ditto! Sometimes we need to be reminded of the past in order to restore it to the present.

Christ was curcified on Wednesday and it is widely accepted in the East that our Blessed Mother died on a Wednesday, worthy of abstinence.

Christ was crucified on a Friday. I've also read/heard that Judas Iscariot betrayed Our Lord on a Wednesday, which explains the abstinence on that day.

"In passing, let me comment that in the Maronite (and most of the Eastern Catholic Churches), both Friday and Wednesday are days of abstinence. Christ was curcified on Wednesday and it is widely accepted in the East that our Blessed Mother died on a Wednesday, worthy of abstinence. These are personal decisions, not dictated by the Catholic Church. As our dearly beloved brothers in the Orthodox Church will tell you, fast and abstinence are strongly encouraged in the East. What is tragic, is that these forms of personal penance are no longer encouraged in the West. Though the rationale may well be that this must come from the heart, which heart can make such a choice if not provided the historical view?"

Excellent comment and what a wonderful spiritual devotion these Ember Days provide for the faithful! Allow me, as an Orthodox Christian, to encourage all of you to take advantage of your ancient traditions and practices, especially as they relate to fasting. It was these practices which kept the Church in the West strong for many, many centuries. Concentration of God while denying the self, gaining mastery over oneself so as to be willing to "die to the self" transforms the mind and clears the eye of the soul so that it might contemplate a bit more clearly the energies of God. My brothers and sisters, your world will become a different place.

Allow me, as an Orthodox Christian, to encourage all of you to take advantage of your ancient traditions and practices, especially as they relate to fasting. It was these practices which kept the Church in the West strong for many, many centuries. Concentration of God while denying the self, gaining mastery over oneself so as to be willing to "die to the self" transforms the mind and clears the eye of the soul so that it might contemplate a bit more clearly the energies of God. My brothers and sisters, your world will become a different place.

Amen!

The practice of 'self denial' is sorely missing in the West! Slowly but gradually, it is being restored by those catholics who seek a higher, more personal sense of metanoia. And they are passing it along. Less, oftentimes, is better.

Anyone remember ember days?

I remember them and still honor them. Interesting read on Ember Days:

Ember Days, Rogations Days, and Station Churches

The "Four Times," or Ember Days

What Are They?

The Ember Days are four series of Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays which correspond to the natural seasons of the year. Autumn brings the September, or Michaelmas, Embertide; winter, the Advent Embertide; Spring, the Lenten Embertide; and in summer, the Whit Embertide (named after Whitsunday, the Feast of Pentecost).
The English title for these days, "Ember," is derived from their Latin name: Quatuor Temporum, meaning the "Four Times" or "Four Seasons."
The Embertides are periods of prayer and fasting, with each day having its own special Mass.

What Is Their Significance?

The Ember Days Are...
Universally Christian,

The Old Law prescribes a "fast of the fourth month, and a fast of the fifth, and a fast of the seventh, and a fast of tenth" (Zechariah 8:19). There was also a Jewish custom at the time of Jesus to fast every Tuesday and Thursday of the week.
The first Christians amended both of these customs, fasting instead on every Wednesday and Friday: Wednesday because it is the day that Christ was betrayed, and Friday because it is the day that He was slain. (And we now know that this biweekly fast is actually older than some books of the New Testament). Later, Christians from both East and West added their own commemorations of the seasons.
The Ember Days thus perfectly express and reflect the essence of Christianity. Christianity does not abolish the Law but fulfills it (Mt. 5:17) by following the spirit of the Law rather than its letter. Thus, not one iota of the Law is to be neglected (Mt. 5:18), but every part is to be embraced and continued, albeit on a spiritual, or figurative, level. And living in this spirit is nothing less than living out the New Covenant.

Uniquely Roman,

The Apostles preached one and the same faith wherever they went, but sometimes instituted different customs and practices. Thus, Christians came to love not only the universal faith but the particular apostolic traditions which had initiated them into that faith.
The Roman appropriation of the Ember Days involved adding one day: Saturday. This was seen as the culmination of the Ember Week. A special Mass and procession to St. Peter’s in Rome was held, and the congregation was invited to "keep vigil with Peter."
Observing the Ember Days, therefore, not only celebrates our continuity with sacred history, but with our own ecclesiastical tradition.

Usefully Natural,

But continuity is not important because of a blind loyalty to one’s own or a feeling of nostalgia. On the contrary, the Christian fulfillment of the Law is important because of its pedagogical value. Everything in the Law (not to mention the rest of the Bible) is meant to teach us something fundamental about God, His redemptive plan for us, or the nature of the universe, often on levels that are not initially apparent to us. In the case of both the Hebrew seasonal fasts and the Christian Ember Days, we are invited to consider the wonder of the natural seasons and their relation to God. The seasons, for example, can be said to intimate individually the bliss of Heaven, where there is "the beauty of spring, the brightness of summer, the plenty of autumn, the rest of winter" (St. Thomas Aquinas).
Second, because the liturgical seasons of the Church are meant to initiate us annually into the mysteries of our redemption, they should also include some commemoration of nature for the simple reason that nature is the very thing which grace perfects.

Communally Clerical,

Another Roman variation of Embertides, instituted by Pope Gelasius I in 494, is to use Ember Saturdays as the day to confer Holy Orders.^* Apostolic tradition prescribed that ordinations be preceded by fast and prayer (see Acts 13:3), and so it seemed quite reasonable to place ordinations at the end of this fast period. Moreover, this allows the entire community to join the men in fasting and praying for God’s blessing upon their calling and to share their joy in being called.

And Personally Prayerful

In addition to commemorating the seasons of nature, each of the four Embertides takes on the character of the liturgical season in which it is located. In fact, the Ember Days add to our living out the times of the Church’s calendar. For example, Ember Wednesday of Advent (a.k.a the "Golden Mass"), commemorates the Annunciation while the Ember Friday two days later commemorates the Visitation, the only time in Advent when this is explicitly done.
Embertides thus afford us the opportunity to ruminate on a number of important things: the wondrous cycle of nature and the more wondrous story of our redemption, the splendid differentiation of God’s ordained servants -- and lastly, the condition of our own souls. Traditionally, these were times of spiritual exercises and personal self-examination, the ancient equivalent of our modern retreats and missions. Little wonder, then, that a host of customs and folklore grew up around them affirming the special character of these days.

Great post! Thanks! :-)