Take the 'Mas' Challenge
Attention all lovers of the Roman liturgical tradition and the English language: We have a three-part challenge for you.
First, without scrolling down and seeing the answers, write down as many single-word names as you can of feast days and other liturgical occasions known by a name ending in “mas” or “mass.” The most obvious is Christ’s Mass or Christmas, but there are at least twenty one others (although one entry consists of two words).
- Andrewmass
- Candlemas
- Childermas
- Christmas
- Crouchmas
- Ellenmas
- Georgemas
- Hallowmas
- Johnsmas
- Kermas
- Ladymas
- Lammas
- Latter Marymass
- Lukesmas
- Martinmas
- Martlemas
- Marymass
- Michaelmas or Michmas
- Petermas
- Roodmas
- Saumas
- Uphalimass
- Uphalimass, Epiphany, 1/6–from “up” (completed, over) and “haliday” (the holidays), Epiphany is the end of the Christmas holidays
- Candlemas, The Purification of the BVM, 2/2–from the blessing of candles on this day
- Ladymas, The Annunciation of the BVM, 3/25 (although it can also pertain to just about any Marian feast)
- Georgemas, St. George, 4/23
- Crouchmas, “Cross Mass,” the Feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross, 5/3
- Johnsmas, St. John the Baptist, 6/24
- Petermas, St. Peter [and St. Paul], 6/29. Originally, though, it was St. Peter in Chains, 8/1
- Lammas, “Loaf Mass”, 8/1 (never officially on the calendar but still a big deal in England and Ireland, when a loaf from the first grains of the harvest was taken to church and blessed)
- Marymass, The Assumption of the BVM, 8/15
- Ellenmas, St. Helen, 8/18 [1]
- Latter Marymass, The Nativity of the BVM, 9/8 (If Assumption Day is the first Mary Mass of the season, Mary’s birthday is the occasion for the “later Mary Mass”–at least before the institution of the Feast of the Seven Sorrows of the BVM on 9/15
- Roodmas, The Triumph of the Holy Cross–from “rood,” a crucifix placed (triumphantly?) on top of a rood screen, 9/14
- Michaelmas, St. Michael the Archangel, 9/29
- Lukesmas, St. Luke, 10/18
- Hallowmas, All Saints’ Day, 11/1
- Saumas, All Souls’ Day, 11/2 (not to be confused with a “Soul Mass,” i.e., a Requiem Mass)
- Martinmas, St. Martin of Tours, 11/11
- Martlemas, ibid.
- Andrewmass, St. Andrew, 11/30
- Christmas, 12/25
- Childermas, Holy Innocents, 12/28
- Kermas or Kermis, a “church Mass,” that is, the anniversary of the dedication of a church. The term quickly migrated to an “annual fair or carnival, characterized by much noisy merry-making” or, in the U.S., a festival held for charitable purposes.
[1] According to the OED: “St. Helena’s day; but the date intended is uncertain. Two saints of the name were commemorated in England: ‘St. Helen the virgin,’ perhaps the one whose day is May 22; and Helena the mother of Constantine. The latter is probably intended here; her festival is August 18, but the Sarum Martyrology assigns ‘Saynt Elene’ to May 18, the date of her translation.”
Source: http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2022/05/take-mas-challenge.html
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