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Happy "Fat Tuesday"
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Mardi Gras, literally "Fat Tuesday," has grown in
popularity in recent years as a raucous, sometimes hedonistic event. But its
roots lie in the Christian calendar, as the "last hurrah" before Lent
begins on Ash Wednesday. That's why the enormous party in New Orleans, for
example, ends abruptly at midnight on Tuesday, with battalions of
street sweepers pushing the crowds out of the French Quarter towards home.
What is less known about Mardi Gras is its relation to the
Christmas season, through the ordinary-time interlude known in many Catholic
cultures as Carnival. (Ordinary time, in the Christian calendar, refers to the
normal "ordering" of time outside of the Advent/Christmas or
Lent/Easter seasons.
Eventually the French in New Orleans celebrated Mardi Gras
with masked balls and parties, until the Spanish government took over in the
mid-1700s and banned the celebrations. The ban continued even after the U.S.
government acquired the land but the celebrations resumed in 1827. The official
colors of Mardi Gras, with their roots in Catholicism, were chosen 10 years
later: purple, a symbol of justice; green, representing faith; and gold, to
signify power.
Read more at http://www.americancatholic.org/features/mardigras/
I found it very interesting reading and I hope you take the time to go through the entire article, it sheds a lot of light on the celebration. I find it very interesting that one of the most raucous party's in the world has its roots in the Catholic Religion.
Any way, have a great Fat Tuesday and celebrate it in your own fun way. ;o)
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