Q:  It was my understanding that a crucufix must be shown for Mass. Our church has everything covered in purple(already) including the processional Cross,no crucifix showing anywhere. It doesn’t seem right, is it?

A:  The instructions for the optional covering of crucifixes appears in the missal at the beginning of the Fifth Sunday of Lent. It does not distinguish between the cross on the altar and the crosses in the church, but I agree with you. If the processional cross carries a corpus, it is best left exposed, and the main crucifix for the celebration of the mass should best be left uncovered. If incense is used, for example, the priest will need to incense that cross.

Q:  My question relates to #42 of the Missal. I understand this to mean that no baptisms means no litany. It seems to follow that the font, ie. the water for baptism at that event is not blessed, but the priest moves to the Blessing of Water, #54. Our priests do not accept this interpretation; they insist on the Litany. I have read the missal, plus your very helpful book “Glory In The Cross“, page 155 over and over. I have conferred with Liturgy Coordinators who said “no Baptisms, no blessing of the font, hence no Litany.” I would really appreciate some clarity and peace of mind. Thank you.

Q:  We have a Blessed Sacrament chapel with 24-hour adoration. What do we do during the Triduum?

Q:  We have a person in RCIA who was baptized a Catholic but confirmed in the Lutheran Church. Do we use the Rite of Reception of Validly Baptized Christians into the Full Communion of the Catholic Church for him?

A:  No, his baptism is a Catholic baptism. If he wishes to be confirmed in the Catholic Church, the bishop is the ordinary minister. But the bishop may give the pastor permission to confirm him at the Easter Vigil or at some other time. If the person or the bishop wishes to have the bishop do the confirmation, you may proceed with first Communion at the Easter Vigil or whenever. In his case, first communion may happen before or after confirmation.

Q:  My daughter recently got married. I wanted the priest to process in just like a Sunday mass. The wedding coordinator was adamant that it was not correct. Can you explain what the a wedding entrance should look like and liturgically why. We also had the brides godparents and confirmation sponsor bring up the gifts . I wanted her to split the bread into two Ciborias but she wanted to have one carry the chalice up at the offertory. Our priest of course said no, I’d like to explain to her why it was not correct. Thank you.

Q:  I am currently completing RCIA at my parish but will be out of the country over Easter. Is there another parish that can perform the rites other than during the Easter vigil?

A:  Adult baptisms may take place on other dates. RCIA 34/2 says that the bishop may decide whether and when the entire rite may be celebrated outside the usual times. RCIA 27 explains that they may celebrated as far as possible on a Sunday, using the appropriate ritual mass from the missal.

Q: I’m not sure if this has been asked but I was wondering for the Passion Gospels on Palm Sunday and Good Friday, the Narrator part at my parish has always been proclaimed by a Deacon. Now that one of our deacon’s has retired, we only have one Deacon who only speak Spanish so our English masses never see a deacon. For the Passion Gospels coming up, can the narrator part of the gospel be proclaimed by a lector or lay minister if there is no Deacon present? There’s also the beginning part that says, “The Passion of our Lord according to Matthew (John on Good Friday) can that be said by the lector or lay minister?

A:  Any reader may read the narrator part of the passion. it does not have to be the deacon. Similarly, that person, as the narrator, introduces the proclamation. Incense, candles, the greeting (“The Lord be with you”), its responses, and the signs of the cross are all omitted. You can find documentation for all this in my book Glory in the Cross, on p. 14.

Q:  A couple getting married in another State are hoping to have a “renewal of their promises” in here later this summer, for those family and friends who couldn’t join them for their actual wedding.  They were specific that this renewal would happen in a “non-church” location.

Someone suggested looking at the outline of the blessing we do for married couples, in The Order for Celebrating Matrimony, to see if this would suit their needs.  (I’m leery of simulating a sacrament if this is what they’ve envisioned)  However, now that I look at it, the text only provides a blessing within the context of the Mass.

Is there a text, or are there guidelines, for responding to this request for something in a non-church environment?

A:  I think you’re spot on to try to help them with a blessing ceremony but not to let it resemble a marriage.

I’d suggest using the Order of Blessing a Married Couple Outside Mass from the Book of Blessings, 115-131. It can be done anywhere. It include scripture readings, petitions and a blessing appropriate for the occasion. You can skip the ring ceremony (124-126), but if you want to include it, you could do some version of 124.

Q:  I have a woman who just moved here with her son from Mexico. As you know, in Mexico they make their confirmation before the first communion. She has presented a letter to me from their pastor that the child is prepared to receive both sacraments. What should be done? Do I ask to confirm him with the to be baptized at the Easter Vigil? Thank you for your thoughts.

A:  Probably so. You need the permission of your bishop to do this because the child was baptized Catholic as an infant. I think if you explain the case to the bishop as you did to me, he will give permission. But it is totally up to him.

Q:  On the evening of Good Friday, my parish performs a “Live Stations of the Cross.” However, instead of ending with the traditional 14th Station (Jesus lying in the tomb), we end with the Resurrection. Is this liturgically-correct, and should it be done?

A:  There is no one official version of the Stations of the Cross. The fourteen stations are traditional, but even Pope John Paul II changed a few of them to make a more biblically-based series of stations. I think there’s no harm in ending with the resurrection. I understand your concern that this is Good Fridaynight, and we won’t be celebrating the Resurrection until Easter. But this is a devotional exercise more than a liturgical one, so it allows some flexibility.