How Did Carnival Come About?

Carnival is a popular annual festival in many Latin American and European countries. Many people wonder how this celebration originated, whether it has anything to do with the church, or even if it is wrong for us, Christians, to celebrate it. Thus, we'll clarify all of these questions.

Carnival is a very, very old celebration, dating back to the sixth century before Christ. It was a feast much like the one we have today, which the Greeks and Romans dedicated to their pagan gods. The festivities were already made with masks, dances, and huge vessel-shaped vehicles, similar to the floats we have today.

When Christianity was implanted in Rome and came across these pagan festivals, it decided to "Christianize" them by giving them a religious sense and removing from it the superstitions, idolatries and orgies. The party was moved to the days just before Lent and later named "Carne Vale", which translates to "Goodbye Meat" because Lent is a time of reflection, penance and fasting.

So it was not that the Church created Carnival; rather, it just gave it a Christian meaning so that the festivities were no longer empty but had Christ as its center. Unfortunately, as we know this does not happen anymore.

This sense was lost over time, and particularly in Brazil, Carnival has become synonymous with orgies, drunkenness, nudity and obscenities. But it doesn't need to be that way. Us, Catholics, are called to live this time with joy and celebration, but one that is not ephemeral. It is not wrong to travel, to party or to celebrate as long as we always have Christ as the center. For that purpose, many parishes sponsor Carnival retreats; to promote fellowship and animation without forgetting our essence.

Therefore, I leave you with this invitation. That we may live this time of the year as the Mother Church teaches and asks us to: guarding purity, propriety and true joy, so that we may set the right tone for the Lenten season.

Your sister in Christ,

Roberta Abreu