Q: Thanks very much for taking the time to respond.  I appreciate your insights!  Two follow-up questions, if I may

Q: 1) Regarding a parish church’s titular solemnity: How widely is this celebrated in the parish? – By a priest

Q: Thanks for your great work. I hope that you are well.  You rarely nod – but we don’t use

Q: Our parish dedication anniversary falls during Lent this year. It’s a solemnity. Do we include the Gloria and the

Q: What advice can you give about the upcoming celebration of Ash Wednesday at the hospitals? One priest chaplain says

Q: I found your blog about praying for the President by name very interesting. I agree with you. I remembered

Q: An interesting issue from this topic is that in Australia, as a result of the Royal Commission into Institutional

Q: I observe a gulf between what the liturgical books say about Instituted Lectors and what happens in practice. 1981

Q: For the Deacon presiding over the ceremony at the cremation place, does the deacon extend his hands after “Let

Q: For a funeral and wedding during the Lent Season, are we allowed to have flowers in the church for

Q: I have someone (candidate) inquiring to be in full communion with the church. She is ready to start formation

Q: Thanks for being here for a new year. Is it acceptable to include devotions to St Joseph during Exposition

Q: Pope Francis admitted women to the ministries of lector and acolyte by means of a motu proprio—a statement on his

Q: Why are there two tiers of ministers? Deputed readers and communion ministers versus instituted lectors and acolytes? Why isn’t

Q: In Eucharistic Prayer I, # 85, the “Commemoration of the Living,” the text has the priest praying for people

Q: Why is the pope allowing women to serve as lectors and acolytes? Are women not able to observe, imitate

Q: Pope Francis is now allowing women to be instituted as lectors and acolytes. I’m not quite clear how this

Q: Just a slight suggested modification to your answer on ‘deputing.’  You wrote that only bishops can institute an acolyte.

Q: Is it proper to pray for the President  of the United by name in the General Intercessions or in

Q: If a person is instituted an acolyte in one diocese, are they an acolyte in other dioceses? == A:

Q: Thanks again for your time last week. The Ministry Monday episode has now been released. You can listen in

Q: When our parish celebrates the solemnity of the anniversary of the dedication of our church, does it affect how

Q: I have almost all your books so I just ordered Ars Celebrandi a few minutes ago.  I realize that your book

Q: How did the custom of signing ashes on the forehead for Ash Wednesday become dominant in English-speaking countries, while

Q: Is it against liturgical law for a priest to bless holy water but have a lay person do the

Q: Is it the case that in any sacramental situation that calls for the priest to lay hands on those

Q: Is it possible to have a rabbi present at the Catholic wedding ceremony and to have them do some

Q: You recommend sprinkling ashes on the crown if the head.  Isn’t one of the purposes of the ashes an outward

Q: Fraternal greetings from ‘down under.’ I received the blurb from Lit Press for your new book re Stations …

Q: The Book of Blessings 1635 implies that the blessing comes at the end of the universal prayer, just as

Q: What are you recommending for blessing of throats and ashes this year of the pandemic? == A: I’m recommending

Q: The app I’m using for Mass says that there’s a creed throughout the weekdays of the octave of Christmas.

Q: Please give me an explanation of the Epiphany Proclamation and according to your opinion, should we do that at

Q: I am checking to see which book is now current for funerals.  I saw in our sacristy a red

Q: As always, thank you  for direction. What is the position of Rome on the placement of national flags inside

Q: Advent Greetings, Paul. Which suppliers stock your books in Australia ? == A: Thanks for asking. I write for

 Q: I am an RCIA candidate and desire very much to enter into full communion with The Church. To that end,

Q: Could a person who is not Catholic come to confession and have his confession heard? == A: If he

Q: Greetings from Down Under! The Advent wreaths in many parishes have three purple candles that are lit on the

Q: I am looking for any compelling documentation/research/insights beyond the Canons and the RCIA that would help Catholic School principals

Q: There are three possible memorial acclamations after the consecration at Mass. Are these connected to the liturgical year or

Q: Thanks for your insights! Hope you are staying well. When an unbaptized Inquirer misses the Rite of Welcoming, can

Q: When is the appropriate time to toll a bell for a funeral held at the church – just before

Q: In a follow up to your other Pall question, I understand the early use was to keep bugs and

Q: I had a question about baptism. Can two unbaptized non-Catholics have their child baptized in the Catholic faith?   This

Q: Why do we call the cloth covered square we place over the chalice a pall? I was looking at

Q: Are lay Communion ministers allowed to self communicate? == A: They are not allowed to self-communicate at Mass. But

Q: Hope you are well. One of the students asked the following in class today.    The solemn blessing at the end

Q: We have a same sex couple in our parish who have adopted a child. Can we baptize that baby?

Q: Is it appropriate to chant the Litany of Loretto during mass and if so, when and at what part

Q: Sorry to bother… but I am teaching a class and a question came up….  I know that we don’t

Q: You never seem to slow down, even during a pandemic! I have a question – really it is coming

Q: Thank you again for your guidance and liturgical advice.  You are a blessing! With regards to the term “Solemn

Q: Fr. Paul, recently, the secretary of a parish where they regularly list the Mass intentions for each Mass in

Q: I hope you’re doing well. I am sorry to bother you, but I thought you may know the answer

Q: We have a funeral for a priest this week and my question is whether we are required to offer

Q: Thanks again for your wisdom. Please confirm the number of swings of the thurible before the monstrance at benediction,

Q: Many parishes have some sort of children’s program at or even during one of the Christmas Eve masses –

Q: I am a cantor at a local church. They regularly play military anthems on the PA before Mass and

Q: It looks like the Sign of the Cross is omitted when beginning the Order of Conferral of Confirmation outside

Q: Would it be liturgically okay to celebrate the Christmas Eve, December 24 at 3:00 PM? if not, should we

Q: Can a non-Catholic baptized Christian have a Catholic funeral if the rest of the family is Catholic?  For example,

Q: We have a 15-year old preparing for confirmation. He’s been going to confession and communion since about the age

Q: Is it possible to choose one of the set of readings from Christmas Night, Dawn or Day and use

Q: Thank you for sharing your wisdom with us. Has the rite for the Anointing of the Sick been updated?

Q: A short discussion came up in the parish recently and I would like your insight if you have the

Q: Thank you for your ministry and guidance for the Church.  Can you recommend any books or resources on Liturgical

Q: I attended a Funeral Mass last week.  The cantor sang “You’ll Never Walk Alone”  from the musical CAROUSEL at

Q: For masses specific to orders like the Knights of Columbus or Knights of St. John, are members of the

Q: In addition to the Rosary, is it recommended that lay persons pray the Liturgy of the Hours in their

Q: At the graveside, one prayer in the Order of Christian Funerals comes with alternatives that depend on whether or

Q: I checked the Ordo for the Commemoration of All Souls on Monday, November 2 this year, and it lists

Q: Is it  appropriate to use the Litany of the Saints at all in the Mass of this Sunday’s Solemnity

Q: What color chasuble should I wear for a Saturday night wedding Mass in Ordinary Time? And which readings to

Q: I am currently preparing a couple for marriage. The bride is a lifelong Catholic and comes from a very

Q: When filling oil stocks or vessels engraved with the various abbreviations (OS, SC, OI) or when preparing holy oils

Q: You say that a non-ordained person does not use the greeting, “The Lord be with you.” This has confused me. 

Q: May a Layperson perform a valid and licit Communion service with distribution of consecrated hosts?  This would be performed

Q: Could lay persons fulfill the role of deacons at the Rite of Election? == A: Oh, my. Well, my

Q: Thank you for your great insights and all that you do for the Church.  If I were to convalidate

Q: Many thanks once again for your guidance in these liturgical matters.   I have noticed at the preparation of

Q: My parish’s new music director now rings a bell at Mass when the presiding celebrant is consuming the precious blood.

Q: I have a different liturgical question for you. I have someone who is a baptized non-Catholic in RCIA. They

Q: It is my understanding that ritual of the Priest washing his hands before the Eucharistic prayers Is rooted in

Q: Toward the end of Eucharistic Prayer III there is an option, after the invocation of the Blessed Mother, St

Q: One of our parishes has a transgender teen seeking confirmation. No one, but the pastor, is aware of this

Q: Thank you for your wide ranging and high-quality help with liturgical issues. My question follows from your recent post

Q: My parishioners who watch the livestream are asking me to lead the prayer of spiritual communion at Mass. Should

Q: Could you please send me the keynote presentations you gave at the National Biennial Liturgy Conference in Australia earlier

Q: A priest friend did a funeral this week for a child who died by miscarriage. Do you think that was

Q: A member of our religious community has tested positive for the virus, and two other sisters have symptoms. We

Q: In light of the recent clarifications from the Vatican I thought I better ask this.  I have an RCIA

Q: Can a godparent fulfill their responsibility on FaceTime? We have a baptism coming up. There’s only one godparent, and

Q: I have a question about preparing for first communion during the pandemic. How can a child really prepare if

Q: When I attended a lecture by the late Fr. Anscar Chupungco, OSB many year ago, he said that the

Q: Many thanks for your continued support and guidance. I very much enjoyed your observations on liturgical matters. Can the

Q: During this Season of Creation (September 1-October 4) and as we mark the fifth anniversary of Laudato Si, are

Q: Thank you for all of your help.  It is a great service to all of us. I have seen

I guess you sent out some canon law quotes relating to RCIA recently, and they seem to say that any

Q: In my State, we are likely facing many more likely months of very strict governmental restrictions on the number