Christians in the Roman Empire made a special biscuit during Lent consisting
of flour, salt, and water (since fat, eggs, and milk were forbidden during the
fast). In honor of the season, they shaped it in the form of two arms crossed in
prayer. They called the biscuit "little arms" (bracellae). In German, the word
became "brezel" or "prezel," from which comes our word "pretzel." The oldest
known picture of a pretzel may be seen in a manuscript from the fifth century in
the Vatican. In cities and towns of Germany, Austria, and Poland, during Lent,
you bought your pretzels on the street from a vendor called the (Brezelmann) and
ate them for lunch, together with a stein of mild, home-brewed beer. In Poland
they ate their pretzels in beer soup.
This information has been
reprinted from Holy Cross' Sunday Bulletins |