Changes for Lent

[hilde_the_dog]

This Lent our parish has introduced new features. The Angus Dei and Kyrie etc are sung in Latin or Greek as the case may be. There has been alot of incense especially in the first few weeks. And now all the stautes, icons, and crucifx’ are covered in purple cloth, which we have not done before. That went up last week when does it come down and is there a service for this? How long may things be covered? Has your parish done these things? I raher enjoy the emphasis on latin/greek and incense.

 

[FrDavid96]

This Lent our parish has introduced new features. The Angus Dei and Kyrie etc are sung in Latin or Greek as the case may be. There has been alot of incense especially in the first few weeks. And now all the stautes, icons, and crucifx’ are covered in purple cloth, which we have not done before. That went up last week when does it come down and is there a service for this? How long may things be covered? Has your parish done these things? I raher enjoy the emphasis on latin/greek and incense.

Nice to hear that!

The time to uncover the statues is during the Gloria at the Easter Vigil Mass.

 

[Teelynn]

Nice to hear that!

The time to uncover the statues is during the Gloria at the Easter Vigil Mass.

WOW! Learn something new every day. Our statues are always uncovered and in place at the beginning of the Vigil Mass.

 

[Phemie]

Nice to hear that!

The time to uncover the statues is during the Gloria at the Easter Vigil Mass.

Why during the Gloria? The rubrics say “at the beginning of the Easter Vigil”.

 

[FrDavid96]

Why during the Gloria? The rubrics say “at the beginning of the Easter Vigil”.

Well, the gloria is “during” the “beginning” of the Easter Vigil. It’s not the opening of course, but it’s at the beginning rather than “before” or “after”

The reason is that’s the tradition of the Church which goes back to time immemorial. The Gloria is the traditional time to light all the candles (from the already-lit Pascal candle), ring the bells once again, and uncover the statues. The Gloria marks the transition from the Old Testament to the New – as far as the proclamation of the readings is concerned.

 

[hilde_the_dog]

I forgot - but when are the statues et al supposed to be covered? Last week Friday?

 

[PhilotheaZ]

I forgot - but when are the statues et al supposed to be covered? Last week Friday?

Traditionally, in time for the celebration of Passion Sunday (which was the week before Palm Sunday).

 

[Phemie]

I forgot - but when are the statues et al supposed to be covered? Last week Friday?

They can be covered either on the Saturday before the 5th Sunday of Lent (that would have been last Saturday) or after the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday.

 

[CarolAnnSFO]

This Lent our parish has introduced new features. The Angus Dei and Kyrie etc are sung in Latin or Greek as the case may be. There has been alot of incense especially in the first few weeks. And now all the stautes, icons, and crucifx’ are covered in purple cloth, which we have not done before. That went up last week when does it come down and is there a service for this? How long may things be covered? Has your parish done these things? I raher enjoy the emphasis on latin/greek and incense.

My church does these things, too. The only one that isn’t different for Lent is the incense, which is used all the time.

The statues will be already uncovered at the start of the Easter Vigil. Uncovering them at any time during a Mass would be awkward, as I imagine it would take quite a lot of scaffolding to reach the statues.

 

[Hilde89]

I have seen both Mary and crucifixes covered in purple fabric.

And, wow, there’s another Hilde here.

 

[hilde_the_dog]

I wondered about the uncovering since our crucifix is 15 feet above the floor at its bottom. The top is well over 25 feet above the floor. I wondered how they covered it?

Hilde is the name of my german short haired black lab mix. Also I had an old friend who came from Germany

 

[BSHoop96]

My church does these things, too. The only one that isn’t different for Lent is the incense, which is used all the time.

The statues will be already uncovered at the start of the Easter Vigil. Uncovering them at any time during a Mass would be awkward, as I imagine it would take quite a lot of scaffolding to reach the statues.

We are the same on the incense and the uncovering! We have to get a very very tall ladder to uncover our Crucifix.

 

[CarolAnnSFO]

I wondered about the uncovering since our crucifix is 15 feet above the floor at its bottom. The top is well over 25 feet above the floor. I wondered how they covered it?

We are the same on the incense and the uncovering! We have to get a very very tall ladder to uncover our Crucifix.

I discovered how they manage to cover the Crucifix in my church – there’s a door behind it! There must be either a ladder or steps behind the altar (I found this out while at a choir rehearsal, in the loft, one night, while the altar was being readied for Palm Sunday Mass). Many of the statues are higher up, so I don’t know how anybody gets up there, unless there are more steps, ladders, and doors I don’t know about.

 

[FrDavid96]

I discovered how they manage to cover the Crucifix in my church – there’s a door behind it! There must be either a ladder or steps behind the altar (I found this out while at a choir rehearsal, in the loft, one night, while the altar was being readied for Palm Sunday Mass). Many of the statues are higher up, so I don’t know how anybody gets up there, unless there are more steps, ladders, and doors I don’t know about.

Don’t you know? Angels come in and decorate the church at night, while the pastor, the staff, and the volunteers are all asleep in bed.

 

[Cavaille-Coll]

One priest at my old parish purchased pure myrrh incense that he used on Palm Sunday and Holy Week liturgies because its bittersweet aroma is reminiscent of the paradox of the Passion. The statues and crucifix were covered on that day before Mass. We didn’t own a clacker, so for Holy Week the altar bells were replaced with a homemade device consisting of a small block of wood with a railroad spike driven into it. At the elevations, the spike was struck three times with a miniature sledgehammer to remind us of the nails used at the Crucifixion. The effect was so powerful, much better than an old-fashioned clacker, that several people broke into tears.

 

[Aramis]

(I’m in a Byzantine Catholic Parish - the rubrics are different…)

We switch from white linens to red for Great Lent, and the palms come in on palm sunday, and will stay until friday. Lillies will replace them sunday morning, and we’l have gold linens for easter and bright week, and then they will go back to the normal white.

Also, throughout lent, Divine Liturgy (Mass) is only sung on saturdays and sundays, and holy days. We have Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts (a communion service as part of vespers, or evening prayer) on Wednesdays and Fridays.

The burial shroud icon (oil on silk) will be moved on Good Friday to the altar “tomb”, and repose there until Pascha (Easter Sunday), whence it will be returned to the normal display location in the back of the nave.

We have incense EVERY service, and that doesn’t change, but Pascha is usually more of it, plus with the processions, more times to load the censor, more added every time…