Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people; that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may of thee be plenteously rewarded; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Blessed feast! Today we remember that Christ is King as the Church year ends. It is a Western, relatively new (instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925), feast that we love. Even the older liturgical calendars emphasize His kingship on this day, so it is really a celebration of what was already remembered. In our world today, that is more important than ever.

This is what Pope Pius XI had to say about its importance:

“If to Christ our Lord is given all power in heaven and on earth; if all men, purchased by his precious blood, are by a new right subjected to his dominion; if this power embraces all men, it must be clear that not one of our faculties is exempt from his empire. He must reign in our minds, which should assent with perfect submission and firm belief to revealed truths and to the doctrines of Christ. He must reign in our wills, which should obey the laws and precepts of God. He must reign in our hearts, which should spurn natural desires and love God above all things, and cleave to him alone. He must reign in our bodies and in our members, which should serve as instruments for the interior sanctification of our souls, or to use the words of the Apostle Paul, as instruments of justice unto God.”

Pious tradition in the Catholic and Anglican worlds is to start preparations for your Christmas cake or pudding, too. Because the collect begins with "Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord," and continues with "that they plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may of thee be plenteously rewarded," it serves both as a spiritual reminder and a fun one for Christmas preparations. We are plenteously rewarded when Christmas Day comes and our cake or pudding is ready. For many and sundry reasons, I will be stirring up our fruits and brandy later this week, while I focus on other things first.

Advent in the West begins later than it does for the East. It is more a Saint Andrew's fast than a Saint Philip's fast. This year, it is even shorter because the Nativity is on a Monday, so the fourth Sunday of Advent is Christmas Eve. In some ways, it feels like a grace from God that it is shorter. This has been such a hard driving year. Also, as the Advent fast is a little lighter until the last week of it, we are still permitted fish, wine and oil on most days, and we, as a family will be having dairy on the weekends to accomodate others and permit some shared hospitality with a culture that doesn't really observe any spiritual preparation or penitence before the Nativity.

We still have loads of tomatoes, both ripe and green, from our garden in our barns, and we are using them up as we can. A friend shared a recipe for a green tomato mincemeat that I plan to make and can and use for Christmas this year. Since we do have an extra week without the Nativity fast, we are enjoying more of our pies. Rich is taking some to work, for them to enjoy our bounty, as well. I'm trying a recipe this week that can only be described as "white people tacos," and I already know that Rich will only be so-so on it, but it sounded like something we could modify and improve. We shall see if it is worth that effort. Since we are using up tomatoes as much as possible, we are eating loads this week.

Between the holiday and the busy-ness of the last week, I still haven't shared the recipes I meant to, so I will try to do that this week. What are you eating on this final week of the Church year?

• Sunday - Feast of Christ the King
  Breakfast: Dirty Eggs, Mandarin Oranges, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Leftover Casserole, Salad, Chestnut Dressing, Bread Stuffing, Pies
• Monday
  Breakfast: Pie, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Instant Pot Hawaiian Chicken Tacos with Jalapeño Ranch Slaw, Rice, Fruit Plate
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Yogurt with Jam, Toast, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Lamb and Guinness Stew, Soda Bread (the recipe is formatted a little oddly, the raisins are optional, not the buttermilk), Last of the Pies
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Oatmeal with Chopped Apples, Raisins, Brown Sugar and Cinnamon, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Shorbat 'Addas, Tamis, Tomato and Onion Salad, Fruit Plate
• Thursday - Feast of Saint Andrew the Apostle
  Breakfast: Labneh, Chopped Tomatoes, Za'atar and Olive Oil on Toast, Oranges, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Pork Chops Pizzaiola, Garlic Pasta, Roasted Veggies, Fruit Plate
• Friday
  Breakfast: Ful, Toast, Chopped Tomatoes and Onions, Duqqus, Kalamata Olives, Mandarin Oranges, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Tomato Fritters, Battatas Harra, Roasted Squash with Taratoor and Pine Nuts
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Milopita to break the fast after Liturgy
  Dinner: Not Texas Chili, Cornbread, Chopped Red Onion, Cilantro, Avocado, Cheese, Sour Cream, Cookies

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Christ the King, Church Year, Faith and Morality, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen