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Category Archives: Rites
Matrimony Regulations
Our parish was just in receipt of our archdiocese’s liturgical calendar for 2022-23, including regulations on celebrating the Rite of Matrimony. Some commentary after each of their notes … Matrimony within Mass on Saturday should be celebrated prior to the … Continue reading
Posted in Liturgy, Rite of Marriage
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Funeral Lectionary: John 17:1-3, 6-9a
Well over a decade ago, we began a series on readings for Christian funerals. Almost as long ago, we completed the passages assigned by the Roman Rite for Catholic funerals. But there are always new opportunities to encounter Jesus in … Continue reading
Posted in Order of Christian Funerals, Scripture
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Scripture for the Sick or Dying: Sirach 38:1-9
I’ve known of this Scripture passage from Wisdom Literature of the Bible for many years. Not sure why I never made a connection to the Pastoral Care rites and the Lectionary that accompanies them. A social media friend is facing … Continue reading
Posted in Pastoral Care of the Sick, Scripture
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Absolution Shift Away From Old English
Is it the nicer-sounding words? The grasping for something of English-Germanic wordsmithing that comes up empty? I’ve commented elsewhere here and in social media about the Liturgiam Authenticam shift in English translations to words of French origin. Therefore, closer to … Continue reading
Posted in Rite of Penance
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Reconciliation Lectionary: Psalm 119:169-176
Many years ago we started a look at Bible readings for Reconciliation. This was never nearly as popular as the Scriptures for funerals and weddings. (But I had to keep my focus on religion somehow.) Newcomers to this site, few … Continue reading
Posted in Rite of Penance, Scripture
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Who’s Baptizing Now?
The news came out today that lay people have been commissioned as extraordinary ministers of baptism in the German diocese of Essen. You’d expect the lingo to be inaccurate from a secular body like the AP: The Roman Catholic Diocese … Continue reading
Posted in Liturgy, Rite of Baptism
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More On The Baptism Thing
Maybe the Google is watching me quite closely, but I’m seeing a lot of secular news items in my feeds on “invalid baptisms.” This one, too, in which Fr Thomas Reese assesses the CDF decision simply enough: I think it’s … Continue reading
Posted in Church News, Liturgy, Rite of Baptism
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The Problem of Father Arango
The Diocese of Phoenix reaches out here to Catholics deemed invalidly baptized because of that I/we thing that came out in the summer of 2020. The liturgical offender, Father Andres Arango, has resigned his pastorate at Saint Gregory Church. If … Continue reading
Posted in Church News, Rite of Baptism
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On A Baptism Acclamation
I have heard through the liturgical grapevine that when “Alleluia” was suggested as an acclamation at the Rite of Baptism, the US bishops demurred. “Inappropriate,” came the word. I don’t know how deeply the word will spread. Many parishes do … Continue reading
Posted in bishops, Liturgy, Rite of Baptism
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Litany for the Commendation of the Dying
At number 220 in the rites for the Pastoral Care of the Sick, there is an option for a litany when a person is near the moment of death. The original blog on it is here. At the risk of … Continue reading
Posted in Pastoral Care of the Sick
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Funeral Lectionary: Genesis 23:2-4, 17-19
Many liturgists suggest women are underrepresented in the Lectionary. Patriarchy was the rule of so many cultures of the ancient Middle East, and this continued into Christian Europe. Deep in the Pentateuch, we have an opportunity to observe our spiritual … Continue reading
Posted in Order of Christian Funerals, Scripture
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Litany For The Deceased
Image credit: Liam, personal photo, from the Old North Burying Ground, Massachusetts. I know there are older versions of the Litany for the Deceased, but this one is particular to the Vigil for the Roman Rite, and is most often … Continue reading
Posted in Order of Christian Funerals
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More Forms For Penance
Sometimes I think the reference to married couples and their families as the Domestic Church is lip service. In churches on the parish level, there is often a plethora of acts of worship and sacramental life. When the domestic form is cited, … Continue reading
Posted in Rite of Penance
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Creepy Confessions
I have never had a bad experience at the Rite of Penance, but I’ve heard from people who have. Those people are pretty much all women. That’s a subjective observation, as guys seem to complain less frequently about confessors. So … Continue reading
Posted in Commentary, Liturgy, Rite of Penance
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Catholic Sensibility 
The Only Template?
Father Acker is asking all sort of wrong questions, mainly this one: Is OCIA the only template that one can use to join the Catholic Church? On one hand, the Church has rites and liturgy. The Order of Christian Initiation … Continue reading →