For This Month

Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras is French for Fat Tuesday. Throughout the world there are different traditions but the Mardi Gras tradition of the Creole people in New Orleans is more than one day. It is a celebration of an entire season which begins on Epiphany (Feast of the Three Kings) and lasts until the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. This is a time of fun and feasting before Lent, which begins a six-week period of fasting and almsgiving in preparation for Easter. Mardi Gras is truly a celebration of the community of faith! Establish a new tradition. Invite other parish families for an afternoon of food, fun, and faith. Lacking time? Make an effort to have a family night. If Fat Tuesday is a tough time, gather on the weekend before Ash Wednesday. Some traditional foods include potato pancakes, sandwiches, and the Christ cake (bake a plastic baby Jesus into a cake and whoever gets the slice with Jesus hosts Mardi Gras next year). Ask guests to bring their favorite Fat Tuesday food.