One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic

Friday is what's called an "Ember Day."  That's a special day of prayer set aside by the Church for prayer and (optional) fasting.  Ember days come four times a year and consists of three days each (Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday).  Part I provided an introduction.  Here is the conclusion of the article. For the past week or so, I've been yammering about the need for prayer and fasting in preparation for the upcoming Amazon Synod.   Perhaps Ember Days are something that will have some broader interest to the readership.  It's a lovely devotion, and one that I hope to take up myself. ------------------- Part II of the article by Fr. Arnauld Devillers , FSSP: Why are they called “Ember Days”? The words have nothing to do with embers or ashes. It may be from the Anglo-Saxon ymbren , a circle or revolution; or more likely it may be a corruption of quatuor tempora through Dutch, Danish or German ( Quatember ). What are the dates of Ember Days?...

Wednesday, Friday and Saturday of this week are the September Ember Days. Occurring once in each of the four seasons, the Ember Days are three days traditionally set aside for prayer and penance, the intention being to thank God for the gifts of Creation and to ask His help in using them well.  This practice was largely abandoned after Vatican II, but in recent years we've seen an increase in this devotion, along with many other beautiful practices from our rich Catholic heritage.    Here's a good article on the what and why of Ember Days by Fr. Arnaud Devillers, FSSP . I'll be dividing it into a couple of segments for ease of reading. What are Ember Days? Ember Days are three days (Wednesday, Friday and Saturday) set apart in each of the four seasons for fasting, abstinence and prayer. Tied to the seasonal cycles of farming and harvesting, the purpose of Ember Days is to render thanks to God for the gifts of Creation and to ask His help in using them well. Sinc...