Shrove Tuesday

Shrove: past tense of "shrive"

shrive

  [shrahyv] 

verb (used with object), shrove or shrived, shriv·en or shrived, shriv·ing.

1.

to impose penance on (a sinner).

2.

to grant absolution to (a penitent).

3.

to hear the confession of (a person).

verb (used without object), shrove or shrived, shriv·en or shrived, shriv·ing. Archaic.

4.

to hear confessions.

5.

to go to or make confession; confess one's sins, as to a priest.

Origin: 

before 900; Middle English shriven, schrifen, Old English scrīfan  to prescribe, cognate with Germanschreiben  to write ≪ Latin scrībere;  see scribe1

It's the common and devout custom for Catholics to make a good Confession on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday begins Lent.  It is, in a way, a "sweeping out of the
house" before the good work of Lent takes place.  St. Thomas Aquinas says:

In the life of the body a man is sometimes sick, and unless he takes medicine, he will die. Even so in the spiritual life a man is sick on account of sin. For that reason he needs medicine so that he may be restored to health; and this grace is bestowed in the Sacrament of Penance.

From St. Bridget, as revealed by Our Lord:

Just as an animal becomes a stronger beast of burden and more beautiful to behold the more often and better it is fed, so too confession - the more often it is used and the more carefully it is made as to both lesser and greater sins - conveys the soul increasingly forward and is so pleasing to God that it leads the soul to God's very heart.

Prayer to St. Gerard Majella for a good confession.

St. Gerard, Patron of a Good Confession, who gave courage to souls whom fear and shame had overcome; who gave sorrow to their hearts, resolution to their wills, truth to their faltering lips; help me to make a good Confession.

Enable me to know my sins, to be truly sorry for them, and to be firmly resolved, with God's grace, never to sin again.

Help me to confess my sins humbly and sincerely, to confess them in the spirit of faith, as confessing them to Our Lord Himself.

Stand by me in this Confession, O gentle Saint, an angel of God sent to free me from sin. Amen.

* So, now...  having been confessed of our sins (we all went on Sunday prior to Mass), we are, admittedly partaking of the goodies we'll be sacrificing for Lent, starting tomorrow.  So that means, we'll be drinking too much coffee, eating too much sugar and watching too many silly movies.  We'll start our Lent with stomach aches, in other words.

** Added note:  I'll be giving up facebook, but not the blog.  So, if you happen by, I may be here.