Local Bishops have granted Catholics dispensation from abstaining from meat on St. Patrick’s Day. Amongst the local area Catholics that have been granted exemption are Washington DC, Baltimore, Arlington and Richmond as well as Catholics in Delaware and Maryland’s Eastern Shore.

Catholics who take advantage of the dispensation are encouraged to perform some other penance, such as abstaining from meat another day.

For Catholics, Fridays during Lent are obligatory days of abstinence from meat. The norms concerning abstinence are binding upon members of the Latin Catholic Church from age 14 onward. In addition, Ash Wednesday (March 1, 2017) and Good Friday (April 14) are obligatory days of fasting and abstinence from meat for Catholics.