Shrove Tuesday pancake supper

You are invited to attend St. Andrew's United Church Shrove Tuesday pancake supper on Tuesday, March 8th, 2011 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in the C.E. building. Free will offering.

The name shrove comes from the old word shrive which means to confess. At one time it was customary to attend church on the Tuesday before Lent to confess your sins so the season of Lent could be enterd into properly. Some people label this day as Fat Tuesday, no doubt in recognition to the extra calories consumed.

Within the Christian tradition, the season of Lent is a time of prayers and preparation for the celebration of Easter. One of the ways to prepare for Easter was to eat a simple diet; avoiding rich food items, especially fat, butter and eggs. Rather than allow these items to spoil while waiting for Easter, the tradition arose of consuming them before Lent started. The most common method of using these items is in some form of baking. We may be most familiar with pancakes, but some other cultures use doughnuts, sweet rolls or pastries. The celebrations and joy in eating this rich food is in contrast to the days of somber relection which will follow.

The rituals and meanings that surround this day are many and varied even within the same Christian denominations. So: why not attend a Shrove Tuesday pancake supper.