Looking back at the weekly messages of Father Paul Counce, first published in The Carpenter, our weekly Parish Bulletin
Published: February 14, 2021
Please note the special changes in our Parish schedule on Ash Wednesday, February 17 this year. Bishop Duca will celebrate Mass here at the Cathedral at 8 am that day; you probably already know that this is the “usual” time for his televised daily Mass. That special 8 am Mass here will be televised as well, and for those attending the Mass in person ashes will be distributed.
Next, both at 12 noon and then again at the end of the workday at 4:30 pm I will also distribute ashes to anyone who wishes to come to the Cathedral. Yet I’m worried about our exposure to the coronavirus – something quite concerning since typically almost two thousand people, Catholic and non-Catholic alike, crowd into the Cathedral for this, especially at noontime. So at these two later services there will be no Mass, just the giving of ashes with the minimal prescribed prayers. By shortening our time together in this way I hope to minimize the risk for all of us.
Probably the most noticeable thing about Ash Wednesday in this year of the Covid-19 virus, will be the different manner of distributing ashes. The Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments in Rome has instructed us to adopt the “touchless” method used in most countries: a pinch of ash is simply sprinkled on the bowed head of the penitent. Although in North America the custom of smudging that pinch of ash onto the forehead has been around for more than a century, it is better in this time of pandemic to avoid touching people one after another.
There will also be other schedule changes, although these are typical ones for us, for we have made these adjustments every Lent for years: daily confessions on M-T-W & F begin a bit earlier at 11:15 am. Also, our usual Stations of the Cross are prayed in church at 11:30 am on Lenten Fridays as well.
Finally, the Knights of Columbus of our local Council No. 13632 will lead the rosary, prayed aloud in church before Mass twice a week, to begin approximately 20 minutes before our 4 pm Saturday afternoon Mass, and also about 20 minutes before our Wednesday noontime daily Mass. It will offer a convenient way to re-discover this classic Catholic prayer and “do something extra for Lent” as well. While I know that many people value the quiet oasis of prayer that our beautiful Cathedral affords us day in and day out, it seems reasonable that taking a little time twice a week to offer this opportunity for shared prayer will be a good thing too.
Note the diocesan regulations on fasting and abstinence on p. 6. These formal rules provide only token penances: you are certainly encouraged to fast (eat less) and abstain (from meat and indeed from anything you especially love!) more during Lent than these bare minimums. For most of the Church’s history, both fasting and abstinence were more severe, on all Wednesdays as well as all Fridays of Lent: why not consider this for yourself and your family this year? It would be a real way to share a bit more in the sufferings of Christ.
So, are you ready for Lent? Do you know what you’ll do without? and also what you’ll do extra? Jesus Himself told us to keep our penances secret (see Mt 6:16-18), but He will know if we really are serious!
In Him,
Fr. Paul Counce
