Will you be shrove?

  The priests will be busy today. Today is the day to shrive. Shrive is an ancient word that describes the act of listening to another confess their sins and then forgiving them. Once that has taken place you are shriven. And that is why we call it shrove Tuesday. Shrive, shriven and shrove. All that leads us to pancakes. Once you have been shriven, you give up things for lent, the next 47 days. Those things were used in preparing pancakes, so you had to use those all up. Some will celebrate ash Wednesday tomorrow by getting that black cross on their foreheads. I've thought maybe that came from the soot from cooking all those pancakes. Cooking pancakes can become a smoky affair, at least in my house it does.

  I've always viewed this tradition as a Catholic thing. I remember hearing about eating those pancakes and would see people the next day with a black cross on their forehead. Teachers and students alike would have that and you just knew they were Catholics. That isn't the truth of it though, as I found out later in life, it depends upon the church leadership what takes place. Personally I was told I was almost Catholic, I went to the Episcopal church. Was baptized and took my first communion there. We just didn't pray to any saints, we went directly to the man. We didn't get shriven, just told our sins to God first hand and assumed we were forgiven. All that was required was to believe, and not do that again. There was no limit on any of that. No penance, no giving up anything, no soot on my forehead. Although curiously we did give things up for lent. As I recall mostly something we didn't really want in the first place. Or I might give up Milky Ways and eat Three Musketeers instead. Pretty sneaky. 

 Since those days it has been called Fat Tuesday and associated with Mardi Gras. I've attended Mardi Gras on two occasions and believe me it has to do with sin. Not much to do with shriving, being shriven or shrove, just the sin part. Pancake Tuesday is also gaining in popularity, a more inclusive term I suspect, before this DEI stuff was even thought about. I'm thinking IHOP had something to do with that. As with most traditions as time goes on the further from the original intent of the tradition we will get until it is basically lost. St. Patrick's day is just around the corner and what is that associated with? Beer, corned beef and leprechauns. A bit distant from the original intent. 

 Shrove Tuesday, Fat Tuesday or Pancake day, whatever you call it, it unofficially marks the beginning of spring, at least in my mind it does. That bunny can't be far off and we all know that bunnies appear in the spring, unlike that stupid groundhog that has to be hauled out of his den. In years long past all the ladies would be getting their Easter bonnets ready and the kids getting new church clothes. Today, it is mostly about the rabbit and candy. Eggs play a big role, although this year I'm certain they will be fewer due to the cost. Did you know that originally the rabbit (hare) would lay colored eggs as a gift to children that were good. Yes, a sort of Santa bunny hybrid creature thing. Eggs were forbidden during lent and they were disguised in that fashion. Interesting how all these traditions came together and continue to transform into something different. I'll be real happy when good old Uncle Sam makes his appearance on the fourth of July. Hot dogs and beer once again. Maybe a grand parade! I could use a good old fashioned patriotic parade! I might even dust off my bicycle, put red, white and blue streamers in the spokes and some trailing from the handlebars and ride in that parade myself! Ah, the good old days.