Today is the Saturday of Ember Days of Autumn. It is the last of the three Ember Days of Autumn set aside to give thanks to the Lord.
Some feel being a Catholic is restrictive. Too much stand, sit, kneel. Songs that sound more like a funeral march than a celebration. Rosaries and religious art. Days of obligation, of fasting, of prayer. And yet today the Church is so much more relaxed. Ember Days are not even mentioned in the new Church Calendar let alone days of fasting and penance. Once upon a time the Church asked a lot more of the faithful in their practice. Back a long time ago communities sprang up around churches. People of the same faith, economic stations, race and a whole host of other similarities bonded together to create communities. After World War II a new way of life sprang up. The suburbs. Within the suburbs were a multitude of difference people co-existing. While early on race was still a separating factor, faith was less important. Catholics and Protestant, Jews and Muslims no longer chose their homes based on proximity to a house of worship. For the Catholic Community, this posed some radical changes. Catholics began to look around at their Protestant counterparts. They both went to Church. They both believed in Jesus. But Protestants didn’t have all the rules that Catholics did. On any given Friday night in Suburbia Catholics poked at their fish stick supper while the aroma of meat on the barbecue floated through the air. More and more Priests were telling their Bishops that the congregations were dwindling, as Catholics found it easier to not be Catholic anymore. As a result, there were modifications made within the church. Bishops had the power to forgo certain restrictions. Not eating meat on Fridays is still a thing, but people could choose some other form of penance. Unfortunately over the years this evolved into eating meat and skipping Friday penance.
What I find interesting about this is that today the Church is made up of two main groups of the Faithful. There are the Roman Catholics and the Latin Rite. When converting from other denominations to Catholic, it is the Latin Rite that has the greatest appeal among young people. Yet it is the Latin Rite that continues to observe pre-Vatican II regulations. Women are veiled. There are more days of fasting. Friday penance isn’t an option but an obligation. I am a Roman Catholic, attending a Roman Mass. I do so because honestly it’s said in English. However; I observe my faith in the Latin Rite, acknowledging the traditions, customs and requirements as they once were. Ember Days are just a part of that.
Very Berry Pancake Tacos
12 frozen Full-size Pancakes
1-1/2 cups frozen Blueberries
1/4 cup Milk
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
2 large Eggs
1/4 cup Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 cup Fresh Strawberries
Whipping Cream as desired
Note: Let pancakes and blueberries thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Heat oven to 350-degrees. Lightly grease a casserole dish and set aside.
Gently fold pancakes in half like taco shells. Layer pancakes together upright supporting one another in the casserole dish. Fill each “taco” pancake with blueberries.
In a bowl whisk milk, cream, eggs, sugar and vanilla together. Pour custard evenly over the pancakes. Let rest on the counter for about 20 minutes so the pancakes can soak up most of the custard. While the pancake tacos sit, clean, hull and dice the strawberries into small pieces. Sprinkle with a little sugar and set aside.
Cover casserole dish with foil, place in the oven to bake for about 30 minutes. Uncover and bake another 5 minutes or so until golden.
Cool slightly, scatter strawberries over the top like tomatoes.
Serve up with a squirt of whipping cream. So packed with sweet berry goodness you won’t believe your mouth!
Don’t worry if the “tacos” fall apart – the flavor is amazing no matter what they look like.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generious heart
and yield a harvest through perseverance.
Alleluia, alleluia.
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