February 2023 Praenotanda

Liturgical Preparation for the Paschal Cycle 2023

You’ll find a multitude of resources to assist in preparing the liturgies of Lent,

Triduum, and Easter on the ODWS website, including:

·         Annual preparation resource from the FDLC in both English and Spanish

·         Sample Lenten communal penance service

·         Music suggestions

·         Preparation checklists for Holy Week liturgies

·         Updated rubrics for the Mandatum and text for the presentation of the sacred oils

· NEW!! Guidance on celebrating Holy Week in a Family of Parishes

And more!

FROM THE DIRECTOR

Dear friends and colleagues,

I hope that this stretch of Winter Ordinary Time has provided a respite from a busy Advent and Christmastide before we begin the 90-day Paschal Cycle. Thanks for everything that you do to provide liturgical and sacramental ministry to the faithful in your parish, school, or other faith community.

In this month’s Praenotanda, you’ll find many resources to help prepare for the Paschal Cycle, including a Liturgy of the Word for Ash Wednesday, information about how to encourage the Sacrament of Penance in your Family of Parishes during Lent, resources to prepare to sing the Exsultet, and - new this year - guidance on celebrating Holy Week in a Family of Parishes. Let us know if you need any more support to prepare these important liturgical seasons.

Please remember that use of the new Order of Penance may begin as soon as Ash Wednesday and is obligatory by the Octave Day of Easter.

You’ll also find information about grant money for improving parish worship, a new series for parish leaders on the Mass, and more.

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

Jeremy Helmes
ODWS Director

FROM THE MUSIC DIRECTOR

As the Beacons of Light process continues to progress, the next phase (Vision) is one that has me most excited about the future! Developing strategies for pastoral ministry and growth in our Families of Parishes requires careful planning.

Having a vision for the future also requires listening to our parish leadership teams of where they are currently, and where they’d like to be moving forward.

To this end, I will be visiting our deaneries in the coming months. Specifically, I want to meet with our pastoral musicians in all parts of the Archdiocese to both inform and listen. Your feedback is important as we work through the Beacons process.

It is also an important opportunity for me to meet with as many of our pastoral musicians as possible to hear your concerns as well as your plans for future ministry in your new Families of Parishes. Meetings will be on Monday evenings to allow our part-time/volunteer musicians (of which there are many) and in a central location within each deanery: stay tuned for more details soon!

Soli Deo Gloria,

Matthew J. Geerlings
Music Director

Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion:
Feb. 26, 2023

This important Lenten ritual is for catechumens preparing for full initiation (Baptism, Confirmation, and First Communion) at the Easter Vigil 2023. Also invited are those baptized Christians who are seeking to be received into the full communion of the Catholic Church this Easter and have been preparing alongside the catechumens. (Please remember that non-Catholic Christians may be received into full communion any time during the year.)

Coming in Lent 2023 – A NEW SERIES ON THE MASS

EUCHARIST: THE WORK OF OUR REDEMPTION

In response to Pope Francis’ call for a “serious and dynamic liturgical formation” (ibid, 31), the Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions is pleased to present a five-part Lenten series which will explore the Mass – “Eucharist: The Work of Our Redemption.” We offer this in harmony with the United States Bishops’ campaign for a Eucharistic Revival.

We have assembled some of the nation’s most respected theologians and liturgists. They will offer not merely an exploration of the elements of the Mass but will reflect on its rich theology and identify implications for pastoral practice.

Eucharist-Centered Parishes

Eucharist-Centered Parishes
The first principle of Beacons of Light is Eucharist: “The Mass is the source and summit of the whole Christian life. Accordingly, the Eucharist is the essential moment for building up and strengthening the parish community, along with the sacraments and other celebrations of the paschal mystery — the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

Each month, we’ll look at one of the aspects of the vision for a Eucharist-centered parish and offer a prompt for your reflection upon your own Family of Parishes.

Trained Ministers: Priests, deacons, and lay liturgical ministers are well-trained and formed for leadership of communities at prayer and are “imbued with the spirit of the liturgy.” (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, 14)

Question for Reflection: Are liturgical ministers in our parishes well-trained and formed? In what other ways can our Family of Parishes train and form liturgical ministers (lectors, EMsHC, musicians, ushers and greeters, servers, sacristans, et al)? How can I as a parish leader help them be even more “imbued with the spirit of the liturgy?"

HELP NEEDED!

Interested in joining the Belonging Task Force? The BTF is a group of parents, teachers, and community members who meet monthly to discuss ways to help and support families on their faith journey. What is special about the BTF? The families we support are those families who have a loved one with a special need. We support the blind, deaf, hard of hearing, and disabled. Would you like to learn more about the Belonging Task Force? I would like to schedule a time to visit your deanery to meet with you. Contact Lisa L. Averion, Associate Director, Office for Persons with Disabilities (OPD)

Q. Must there be a new paschal candle each Easter or can we re-use a previous year’s?

A. While the rubrics of the missal don’t explicitly state that the paschal candle is new each year, this is assumed for a few reasons. First, an object that is already blessed need not ordinarily be blessed again, and the blessing of the candle is a normative part of the Easter Vigil liturgy itself. Second, the inscription of the candle with the current year is also a normative part of the Easter Vigil liturgy itself, which presumes that the candle is not already dated. Thus the implicit assumption is that the paschal candle is new each Easter. This is theologically consistent with the themes of newness that undergird Eastertide generally. A previous year’s paschal candle could possibly be stripped of the year and used in a chapel or kept as a backup should the current year’s be damaged in any way.