Shrove Tuesday-My Rhymes and Reasons 2.21.23
Shrove Tuesday Celebrated February 21, 2023
What is Shrove Tuesday, and Why is it Celebrated?
Pancake Day, or Shrove Tuesday, is the traditional feast day before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday. Lent – the 40 days leading up to Easter – was traditionally a time of fasting, and on this Tuesday, Anglo-Saxon Christians went to confession and were “shriven” (absolved from their sins).
Why is it Called Shrove Tuesday?
The word ‘shrove’ comes from the old Roman Catholic practice of being ‘shriven’ – meaning to confess one’s sins. The shriving bell would be rung on this day to call people to church to confess. Before Lent could begin earnestly, all edible temptations needed to be removed.
Greg Asimakoupoulos is an ordained minister, freelance writer, and poet. He is the author of fourteen books and more than three hundred articles. In addition to writing a monthly “faith and values” column for three newspapers, he has written a weekly poetry blog (Rhymes and Reasons) since 2003.
