FACEBOOK @FLORIDACATHOLIC Feb. 12-18, 2021
FLORIDA Catholic
OR NDO DIOCESE
GLENDA MEEKINS
of the Florida Catholic staff
ORLANDO A year after churches were closed for public worship just in the third week of Lent, Catholics face another Lent during pandemic times. This Lent the pandemic is allowing Catholics to embrace the Cross once again as we receive it. Now a year later, we are offering ourselves to God in this humbled state, perhaps understanding our focus is about the essentials - about God among us and how we live the glory of that Gift each day, said Bishop John Noonan. Catholics can expect much of the same "repertoire of safe- ty" this Lenten season, according to Bruce Croteau, director of liturgy for the Diocese of Orlando and St. James Cathe- dral. He said Catholics celebrating Mass will remain socially distant, wearing masks. Small groups will continue to meet according to safety protocols. The usual devotions of Lent such as the Stations of the Cross will continue, perhaps with various creative virtual opportunities for prayer. The litur- gies of the Sacred Triduum will also most likely be impacted, although at this time, nothing is official. Perhaps the most noticeable change will come on Ash Wednesday. On Jan. 12, 2021, Archbishop Leonard Blair, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Divine Worship, issued a memorandum to all U.S. bishops. "While Ash Wednesday is not a holy day of obligation and while there is no requirement for the clergy and faithful to receive the imposition of ashes, it is rightly observed as a celebration of high importance, and many will surely wish to participate even amid the current difficulties," he wrote. Anticipating large attendance, in the interest of safety, Archbishop Blair shared the Holy See's modified method of distributing ashes during a pandemic, provided by the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments. According to the modified method, the priest will bless the ashes with holy water, then address the con- gregation as a whole. As per the Roman Missal, he will say, Repent, and believe in the Gospel", or "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return". The priest will then cleanse his hands, put on a face mask and distribute the ash- es ..." As done in many countries, including at the Vatican, the ashes will be "sprinkled" on the top of the head rather than imposed on the forehead. The ashes are a sacramental. They help us be more in touch with the rituals of our faith; they are spiritual tools," Croteau explained. Like water and its recollection of our Baptism, "sacramentals lead us to the Sacraments- When used in ritual, the ashes become a sign of inner conver- sion," he said. That inner conversion also gives us courage to spread the Good News with those we meet. Phyllis Milmore, of Most Precious Blood Parish in Oviedo, recalled several instances when the ashes prompted ques- tions from non-Catholics and offered an opportunity for evangelization. Last Ash Wednesday, after participating in the celebration of Mass at Most Precious Blood and receiv- ing ashes, Milmore brought some items over to a local chari- table organization that helps those in need. The young man who helped unload her car mentioned the "dirt" on her fore- head. This led to a five-minute conversation about Lent and Church. I felt blessed and an inner joy when I realized that God had given me the opportunity to share my Catholic faith and that I had not been afraid to take it," she said. The tradition of placing ashes on one's person pre-dates Jesus. In Genesis 3:19, after the fall, God said to Adam, "You are dust and to dust you shall return" - the phrase we hear repeated each Ash Wednesday. It is a symbol of our mortali- ty. Later, in Job 42:6, Job repents "in dust and ashes," symbol- izing mortality and repentance. Ashes also represent inter- cession. In Daniel 9:3, as Daniel prays for his people, his pen- ance takes the form of fasting, ashes, and sackcloth. As the Maccabees entered an intense time of prayer, 1 Maccabees 3:47 states: "They fasted that day, and they put on sackcloth and sprinkled ashes on their heads, and rent their clothes." The Church Fathers frequently refer to these examples, but it was not until 1091 that Pope Urban II recommended both clergy and laity continue the practice, so the rite of blessing and imposing the ashes became an important part of liturgi- cal life. The ritual of sprinkling ashes recognizes we are sinners in need of repentance and this life is only preparation for eternity. Croteau noted the pandemic is providing us an op- portunity to greater appreciate our faith. "How can you take a year of lived experience, of sacrifice, illness, death - and once it's over go back to normal? You don't want to do that. It's the nature of paschal living. You're different at the end." Although the pandemic is not over, he alluded to the in- terior transformation to which all are called during Lent. Looking ahead he said, "Hopefully it will be a world where the sufferings and pain of this past year will be transformed into new life, because that's what Christ does for us." Bishop Noonan pointed out, "The first reading of Scrip- ture from Joel for the first day of the season of Lent calls us to draw near to God, 'Even now, says the Lord, return to me with your whole heart.' Hopefully our journey during God's time teaches us the reality of offering ourselves wholly, en- tirely to God that no matter the season, we live as His holy people."
n
LENT
in pandemic times
At left, a portrait of ashes sprinkling upon the head. This year, due to the pandemic, the Vatican and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops have requested all priests impose ashes via sprinkling, according to the ritual option. Above, during Lent, ashes are used as an outward sign of grief, a mark of humility, mourning, and penance. (NOELANI PARYS FC)
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