Word of the day: indult
From the late Latin indultum, meaning "grant, concession", from indultus, the past participle of indulgere "to indulge", we get indult. Meaning? Well, meaning it's a dispensation from the Pope that allows a special exception to Roman Catholic Church law. Meaning? Well, we're talking about the double dilemma of 17 March.
You see, St Patrick's Day falls during Lent and on a Friday! This presents those whose Lenten fast requires eating fish on Fridays with a challenge. After all, typical fare for St Patrick's Day embraces Irish stew seasoned with Guinness and plates of bacon and cabbage. On the other side of the Atlantic, it's the sacred corned beef sandwich that dominates the festive table. Enter Rocco Palmo.
Along with being a contributor on American affairs to The Tablet, the international Catholic weekly published in London, Rocco, a Philadelphia resident, is the proprietor of the excellent Whispers in the Loggia blog. For the past fortnight, Rocco has been working the indult beat and the results are impressive. So, far Paddy's Day indults have been granted by the archdioceses of New York, Washington, Indianapolis, Detroit, Cleveland, Cincinnati, St. Paul and Minneapolis, Saint Louis, Kansas City, and the archdiocese for the Military Services. Oh, and Philly has been added to the list. Now, if only there were an indult for wetting the shamrock. Anecdote: Listeners of South East Radio, which serves Wexford, Wicklow and Kilkenny were once asked that they ate on March 17th. "Eat? I eat pints!" said one respondent. Another spoke of his pint of Guinness as a "shamrock sandwich". More on sandwiches tomorrow.
