Catholics OK to eat meat on St Patrick’s Day
Traditionally, Catholics abstain from eating meat on a Friday during Lent however many Archdioceses have taken a liberal approach to the situation and granted dispensation to allow them to consume meat.
According to the Catholic News Agency, Archdioceses that have granted a general dispensation include Atlanta, Georgia, Baltimore, Maryland; Boston, Massachusetts; Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles and San Francisco, California; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; New York, New York; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota; and the Military Services, USA.
In some places, people are being asked to transfer their day of abstinence to the next day if they choose to eat meat on St Patrick’s Day.
In other Archdioceses, including Detroit, Michigan and Portland, Oregon, as well as the Dioceses of Trenton, N.J., Salt Lake City, Utah, and Grand Island, Nebraska, the archbishops and bishops have stipulated that the faithful must ask a priest’s permission if they want a dispensation.
Only two dioceses, the Archdiocese of Denver, Colorado and the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska, have publicly announced that they will not be granting any dispensations for the day.
The last time St. Patrick’s Day fell on a Friday was 2006.
According to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, corned beef sales increase nine-fold during the month of March.
