Pretzels and Lent Go Together ... didn't you know?

We thought we'd share the little known connection between pretzels and Lent with our parishioners this month, and raise some funds in the process.  Little did we know what a hit the idea would be ... or what exactly might be involved in making nearly 450 pretzels.  But it was a great group effort ... we learned a lot ... and had some fun, as the pictures show.  And below the pictures, you can find out a bit about that whole Lenten Pretzel tradition!  

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

   

 

The Catholic Church played a leading role in the early history of the pretzel. In the seventh century, the church dictated stricter rules governing fasting and abstinence during Lent than it does today. Pretzels, made of a simple mixture of water, flour and salt, were an ideal food to consume during Lent, when all types of meat, dairy and eggs were prohibited.

The first pretzels were baked as a soft, squishy bread, like the soft pretzels of today. Some say they were originally called “bracellae,” the Latin term for “little arms,” from which Germans later derived the word “bretzel,” and referring to a common posture of folded arms during prayer. According to others, the earliest pretzels were dubbed “pretiolas,” meaning “little rewards,” and handed out by the monks when their young pupils recited their prayers correctly. Whatever they may have been called, the popularity of these twisty treats spread across Europe during the Middle Ages.