Helgeson's Hikes: 60 Day Diet Plan

Monday, February 2, 2015

Here’s a great diet plan . . .

60 Day Diet Plan

No Meat

No Milk

No Eggs

No Butter/Lard

No Cheese

No Wine (alcohol)

Only one meal/day – after Sundown

On Sunday, you can have one dinner and two small meals.

During Holy Week, you must abstain from all food except bread, salt, herbs, and water

Yikes! Good luck with that impossible diet.

However, our ancestors followed this plan for the first 1,000 years of the Church.

And, Lent used to last 60 days but is now only 40 days.

Could you handle this demanding diet?

Why Easter Eggs:

Why do we give out Easter Eggs?

Because our ancestors could not eat eggs for 60 days before Easter.

So, getting an egg on Easter was a very special treat.

How we became a bunch of winy wimps:

In the 10^th Century, the pope allowed the one meal/day to begin at 3pm instead after sundown.

In the 14^th Century, the pope allowed the one meal/day to begin at noon instead of 3pm.

In the early 20^th Century, our ancestors abstained from meat on Wednesdays, Fridays, and some Saturdays.

Today, we only have to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesdays and Good Fridays.

Today, abstaining from meat on every Friday is optional but encouraged.

Helgeson's Hikes