Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Feast of the Seven Fishes

A custom for Christmas Eve. To quote:
Many are the legends surrounding this curious but ancient ritual. The habit of eating seafood on Christmas Eve comes from the Roman Catholic tradition of abstinence from the consumption of meat or milk products on Wednesdays, Fridays and (in the Latin Church) Saturdays, as well as on the eve on any important religious feast. And there are more than just one hypothesis for what the number “7” means.

Did you know seven was the most repeated number in the Bible? Actually, it appears over 700 times. And one of the most accredited theories is the number represents completion: in the Genesis 2:2, you can read “By the seventh day God completed the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.” and, in a way, during the feast of the seven fishes, Christians celebrate the completion of God’s promise of the Messiah through Jesus. But seven also represents the seven Sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church such as the Seven Hills of Rome that surround the city. (Read more.)
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