I blame the Catholic Church

Growing up in Catholic Ireland was pretty strange in many ways. There were all sorts of activities that condemned those partaking to eternal damnation. One could also easily slip into the pit through sins of omission. I well remember the fear and guilt that I felt the first time I allowed more than a month to elapse between confessions. A one way ticket to the hot place. Today, for reasons best known to either God or the church the rules are a bit more relaxed. One does not attract eternal damnation of the soul for eating meat on a Friday.