Quarter tense (called in all other English speaking countries "ember days") is a uniquely Irish name for those days set aside in the western Christian church for prayer and fasting to sanctify the liturgical seasons. They are of very ancient and uncertain origin, though are generally believed to have originated in Rome. The dates of their celebration are now normally determined by national Roman Catholic hierarchies and not by the universal calendar of the church. The Saturdays of Quarter Tense were considered especially appropriate for priestly ordination. The days of Quarter Tense were, until the Second Vatican Council, time of obligatory fasting and abstinence. However, in Ireland, the obligation of abstinence (the complete avoidance of meat) on the Saturdays of Quarter Tense outside Lent was removed by the Vatican in 1912.
The old dates in the Irish calendar for the observation of Quarter Tense were:
See also: Liturgical colours