Meat represents the flesh. Jesus sacrificed his flesh on Good Friday. Therefore, abstinence from meat honors the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross.
It has to be noted that Church law altered in 1966 from forbidding flesh meat on every Friday of the year to only forbidding it on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
“If someone unintentionally eats meat by accident without willfully knowing they've done wrong, it's not a sin. I usually suggest they make sure to sacrifice something else in its place to make up for eating meat.”
During the 40-day period of Lent (which begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday), Catholics are asked to abstain from eating meat on Fridays. That's why Friday night fish frys are so popular during Lent, particularly in the Midwest. Then, on some days during Lent, Catholics are also asked to fast.
The question drew more than 300 responses. “Catholic teachings tell us to refrain from eating meat on Fridays as an act of penance," Sheila Wolf LeBouef wrote. "Friday is a day of penitence, as it is believed Christ died on a Friday. Everyone has the right to either eat meat or not.
In the United States in 1966, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops passed Norms II and IV that bound all persons from age fourteen to abstain from meat on Fridays of Lent and through the year.
Here's why: meat was at one point considered an indulgence, so abstaining from meat on certain days is intended as a form of penance and a way for Christians to honor Jesus' sacrifice of his flesh on Good Friday. That means no meat from birds, cows, sheep, or pigs.
Also, on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and all Fridays during Lent, adult Catholics over the age of 14 abstain from eating meat. During these days, it is not acceptable to eat lamb, chicken, beef, pork, ham, deer and most other meats. However, eggs, milk, fish, grains, and fruits and vegetables are all allowed.
In summary, eating meat on Friday is a sin (excluding Solemnities or serious grounds for exception such as illness), but whether it is a mortal sin or a venial one will depend on many factors, including the quantity of meat, the number of Fridays in question, and the significance of the particular Fridays in question.
Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are obligatory days of fasting and abstinence for Catholics. In addition, Fridays during Lent are obligatory days of abstinence. For members of the Latin Catholic Church, the norms on fasting are obligatory from age 18 until age 59.
“All persons who have completed their fourteenth year are bound by the law of abstinence” (Canon 1252). The U. S. Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB) extended this law to include all Fridays in Lent. Since Jesus sacrificed his flesh for us on Good Friday, we refrain from eating flesh meat in his honor on Fridays.
No, neither the Church nor the Bible says that eating meat is a sin. In the book of Acts, St. Peter is instructed by God to slaughter and eat any animal (15:9-15). The Church asks us to abstain from eating meat on the Fridays of Lent as a penance, but that is not because eating meat is inherently sinful.
Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are obligatory days of fasting and abstinence for Catholics. In addition, Fridays during Lent are obligatory days of abstinence. For members of the Latin Catholic Church, the norms on fasting are obligatory from age 18 until age 59.
The three traditional pillars of Lent are prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Through the three pillars of Lent we journey to develop a closer relationship to God.
There also are no limits on most beverages you can have on Ash Wednesday, so coffee and tea would be acceptable. Children, the elderly, pregnant women and those with certain health conditions are exempt from fasting on Ash Wednesday and during Lent.
Catholic Fasting Rules
Catholics age 14 and older do not eat meat on Ash Wednesday and all Fridays during Lent, including Good Friday. Instead of meat many Catholics choose to eat fish - which is why many parishes around the country have fish fries on Fridays during Lent.
For centuries, Catholics were bound to abstain from meat on Fridays, the day that Christ was crucified and the fifth day of creation when God made the animals. Then, in 1966, the Second Vatican Council relaxed the law to the point where Catholics were virtually freed from the obligation.
For Christians, the practice of meat free Fridays dates back at least 1100 years. In the 9th Century, Pope Nicholas I declared that believers should abstain from eating “flesh, blood, or marrow” on Fridays in memory of Christ's death and crucifixion.
In 866 A.D., Pope Nicholas I made Friday abstinence from meat a universal rule of the church. By the 12th century, abstinence and fasting on Friday, for penance as well as in memorial of Christ's Passion, were common practices. Most Catholics were bound by the rules, even children as young as 12.
Summed up succinctly, Roman Catholics must fast and abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday, Wednesday, February 22, 2023 and Good Friday, April 7, 2023. Additionally, they must abstain from meat on all Fridays during Lent.
Abstinence is the act of “doing without” or avoiding something. For example, someone may abstain from chocolate or alcohol by not consuming them. Particular days of abstinence during Lent are Fridays, Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
In addition, everyone ages fourteen and older is required to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and the Fridays of Lent.
According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, abstinence laws say meat is considered something that comes only from animals that live on land, like chicken, cows, sheep or pigs. Fish are considered a different category of animal.
Fish, Fridays & Lent
It simply meant abstaining from eating the flesh of warm-blooded animals—since the thinking goes, Jesus was a warm-blooded animal. Fish, though, which are cold blooded were considered okay to eat on fasting days.