Monday, March 8, 2010

Fish on Friday (or meatless Fridays)


Another interesting part of my week. My husband is a bartender several days each week and Friday was one of those days. Somehow the topic came up of abstaining from meat on Fridays. One of his regular customers pulled a bible from his backpack and asked him to show him where that was in the bible....

Now, Kevin hasn't been to all the classes with me and it looks like he wont be joining with us this year and didn't know the answer. To be honest I didn't know either.

Here is what I have found.

Friday is the day Christ died so, abstaining from the shedding (and consuming) of blood seems appropriate..

Friday (the 6th day) was also the day that God created animals, so abstaining from meat is a symbolic "stay of execution" for cows, pigs, sheep - just as the cross saves us from eternal death.

So, it got me thinking.

I don't know the answers so please feel free to chime in :-)

Is there a biblical basis for attending church on Sundays?
Is there a biblical basis for alter calls?

I guess my point is that I understand that tradition plays a big role and that from what I understand, the Catholic Church was abstaining from meat (and other food items) during the Lenten season before the Bible was even finished being written. But, what I don't understand is why the first arguement is "show it to me in the bible" when even in Protestant churches, there are things practiced that aren't straight from scripture.

I love hearing from you all! Tell me what you think or expand if you think I need more information or another perspective!

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4 comments:

Unknown said...

The only one I can address with any certainty is the Church on Sundays. The commandments tell us to keep holy the Lord's Day. For Catholics this is Sunday because Christ rose from the dead on Sunday. This makes every Sunday like a mini Easter!

wdomburg said...

This article from the Catholic Encyclopedia looks like a good starting point. It seems likely that anyone taking that line of argument likely rejects the Catholic respect for tradition and the authority of the church.

Judy Dudich said...

What I find most curious about the Sola Scriptura mindset (MUST be in the Bible to be true) is that it is self-contradictory from the get-go...I ask: WHERE in the BIBLE does it say that things MUST be in the BIBLE to be believed?!?!?!? In fact, the opposite is true...Jesus told the Apostles to KEEP their traditions for they were "good".
Anyway,abstaining from meat is a self-denial...the offering of which we can unite to the one True Sacrifice, in penance for our sins.

Thou Art Jules said...

I love the mini Easter comment! I just read that somewhere else as well. It really stuck with me.

wdomburg - I'm going to go check that out right now!

Judy - I hope I am remembering your name right! Thank you for that. I had never quite thought of it that way! I will share that with my husband.

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