No meat during lent

wjstoj
wjstoj Posts: 884 Member
in Chit-Chat
Was this really done in connection with people eating beaver tails ?? I know I heard some sort of history about people eating beaver tails but don't remember what the deal was

Replies

  • Holly_Roman_Empire
    Holly_Roman_Empire Posts: 4,440 Member
    LOL I have never heard that!
  • wjstoj
    wjstoj Posts: 884 Member
    it appears I have my "facts" jumbled up as the no meat thing predated the beaver tail thing

    Per wikipedia"

    "In the 17th century, based on a question raised by the Bishop of Quebec, the Roman Catholic Church ruled that the beaver was a fish (beaver flesh was a part of the indigenous peoples' diet, prior to the Europeans' arrival) for purposes of dietary law. Therefore, the general prohibition on the consumption of meat on Fridays during Lent did not apply to beaver meat. The legal basis for the decision probably rests with the Summa Theologica of Thomas Aquinas, which bases animal classification as much on habit as anatomy. This is similar to the Church's classification of the capybara, another semi-aquatic rodent."

    Ergo, feel free to eat as much beaver as you want today.....wait, that may not have come out quite right
  • autumnsquirrel
    autumnsquirrel Posts: 258 Member
    As someone who was born and raised a Catholic, I never thought to look that up, LOL!!!!!! When Mom, Dad and Grandparents said "No meat on Fridays", we simply did not eat meat on Fridays, no questions asked. Thanks for the info:)
  • Myhaloslipped
    Myhaloslipped Posts: 4,317 Member
    it appears I have my "facts" jumbled up as the no meat thing predated the beaver tail thing

    Per wikipedia"

    "In the 17th century, based on a question raised by the Bishop of Quebec, the Roman Catholic Church ruled that the beaver was a fish (beaver flesh was a part of the indigenous peoples' diet, prior to the Europeans' arrival) for purposes of dietary law. Therefore, the general prohibition on the consumption of meat on Fridays during Lent did not apply to beaver meat. The legal basis for the decision probably rests with the Summa Theologica of Thomas Aquinas, which bases animal classification as much on habit as anatomy. This is similar to the Church's classification of the capybara, another semi-aquatic rodent."

    Ergo, feel free to eat as much beaver as you want today.....wait, that may not have come out quite right

    I will! :laugh:

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