February 2021 Praenotanda

FROM THE OFFICE DIRECTOR

Dear friends and colleagues,

I hope that, in spite of this pandemic winter, your liturgical and sacramental ministry has been fruitful and effective in your parishes, schools, and other faith communities. In these dark and gloomy winter days, it is more important than ever that we radiate the love of Jesus Christ through our common prayer and liturgical worship.

There are many things “of note” happening that will be of interest to all who serve in the areas of worship and sacraments. I look forward to seeing you at our new Beacons Roundtable online sessions for parish leaders throughout the spring.

We will continue to do our best to provide timely and clear guidance and suggestions on celebrating worship and sacraments during this time of public health concern, especially during the important seasons of Lent, Triduum, and Eastertide. Reminders of existing guidance as well as some new topics (notably the Scrutinies) are detailed below.

As always, if there’s anything that Matt, Monica, or myself can do to assist you in your worship and sacramental ministries, please let us know.

Jeremy Helmes
ODWS Director

FROM THE MUSIC DIRECTOR

It looks like our recent “pandemic Christmas” is rolling into “pandemic Ash Wednesday” and “pandemic Holy Week.” Fortunately we all have a little bit of experience now in handling the changes and challenges facing us.

The Office of Divine Worship and Sacraments is here to help! Please share with your pastoral staff our new and improved website. Have you seen the new Archdiocesan hymn text, written by Sr. Genevieve Glenn in honor of our bicentennial year? It has been set to multiple hymn tunes that you may freely download for use in your parish music program from our website.

Do you have something you would like to see on the music page of the ODWS website? Please let us know! Whether it’s copyright issues, choral resources, etc., I encourage you to let me know what information would help you most in your work and ministry.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Matthew J. Geerlings
Director of Music
Archdiocese of Cincinnati &
The Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains

* Share With Your Parishioners *

NOW AND AT THE HOUR OF OUR DEATH

Online workshop for funeral and medical pre-planning

Feb. 3, 1:30-3pm & Feb. 4, 7-8:30pm

It’s never too soon to begin thinking about our own funeral, end-of-life care, and who will be making those decisions. Join us to learn about how to get started on planning a Catholic funeral and what the Church teaches on key end-of-life issues. Topics include pre-planning the three stages of the Catholic funeral, what the Church really teaches about cremation, how to approach difficult end-of-life decisions with your loved ones from a Catholic perspective (life support, medical power of attorney, etc.), and more.

BEACONS ROUNDTABLE

Plan to join other priests and parish leaders (pastors, parochial vicars, deacons, and lay staff) for Beacons Roundtable, a web series focused on building vital parishes that are beacons of light. Every Beacons Roundtable session will include timely information, examples from Archdiocesan parishes, and opportunities to share your experience, thoughts, and ideas with others. Beacons Roundtable will be held from 1:30 – 3:00 on the following Wednesday afternoons:

Feb. 24: Parishes as Beacons of Light

March 10: Welcome and Hospitality is Key

March 24: Together: Encouraging Parishioners to Return to Public Worship

Closed Caption and Catechesis?

In our work to bring the Gospel to all of God’s people, Deaf Catholics are frequently overlooked. Well-intentioned assumptions are made that we are meeting the needs of the Deaf Community if we provide transcripts, books, workbooks, or written lesson plans; however, these options are often not the best solution.

American Sign Language (ASL) is a recognized language with its own grammar, syntax, and sentence structure. It is very different from the spoken English language, and many times there is a huge gap in translation.

For Deaf persons, following along with Closed Caption during a video or reading a text would be similar to providing people who have learned Spanish as a second language with Spanish subtitles and text books. It is not an impossible option, but it is more difficult than learning in one’s own language. Closed Captioning is still a wonderful tool for people who have hearing loss or auditory processing issues, it is just not the best solution for the Deaf Community.

The good news is that there are a number of fantastic resources that are being developed for Deaf Catholics. Hands of Grace: The Catholic Sacraments in American Sign Language is an innovative program created by Ascension Press that features video presentations by Father Sean Loomis teaching in ASL, as well as a workbook that is specifically designed with a visual emphasis to provide a better, dynamic learning experience for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community.

The National Catholic Office of the Deaf has also created the YouCat in ASL and we have a number of ASL Sacraments & Prayer videos uploaded to the Office for Persons with Disabilities resource pages. Please feel free to reach out to our office if you have any other questions about how to better minister to Deaf Catholics. We will be offering some workshops on this topic in the near future.

Q. What options may be used for the Profession of Faith at Mass on Sundays and Solemnities?

A. #18 of the Roman Missal puts the Nicene Creed in first place, both with chant notation and text. #19 then specifies that “Instead of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed, especially during Lent and Easter Time, the baptismal Symbol of the Roman Church, known as the Apostles’ Creed, may be used.” This gives a clear indication that the Nicene Creed is to be normatively used throughout the year and the Apostles’ Creed could be used during Lent and Easter. There is no indication that the Apostles’ Creed would be used during other seasons simply because it’s shorter. Also, when other sacraments or rites are celebrated during Mass (e.g., Baptism or the Rite of Election), the Creed may be omitted.