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Questions about Lent: the obvious and not so obvious – Part 2 of 2

Continuing to address some of the inquiry minds want to know questions associated with Lent, below are a few more of the Q’s and A’s from Catholic Answers– bringing some clarity to the not so obvious.

May a baby be baptized during Lent?

Yes, infants may be baptized during Lent.  There is no Church law or liturgical guideline that prevents or discourages the baptism of infants during the Lenten season. However, it is more common to hold off any baptisms during Lent unless the person is in danger of death.

Are you allowed to have flowers on the altar during a funeral Mass during Lent?

. . . During Lent it is forbidden for the altar to be decorated with flowers. Laetare Sunday (Fourth Sunday of Lent), solemnities and feasts are exceptions. Floral decorations should always be done with moderation and placed around the altar rather than on its mensa. (GIRM, 305).

Funerals are not included in the list of exemptions to the prohibition of flowers during Lent.

Are there exceptions for not eating meat on Fridays during Lent?

There are a few exceptions. For example, the Code of Canon Law says, “Abstinence from meat, or from some other food as determined by the Episcopal Conference, is to be observed on all Fridays, unless a solemnity should fall on a Friday. Abstinence and fasting are to be observed on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday” (can. 1251).

In the United States, that means if March 19 (St. Joseph’s Day) or March 25 (Annunciation of the Lord) falls on a Friday other than Good Friday during Lent, you would be exempt from meat abstinence, as those dates are normally solemnities.

In addition, sometimes diocesan bishops provide a dispensation on a Lenten Friday, such as, when St. Patrick’s Day (March 17) lands on a Friday. Likewise, if you happen to be traveling to another diocese on St. Patrick’s Day, i.e., when it falls on Lenten Friday again, you should observe the regulation of that diocesan bishop.

Is it acceptable for laymen to participate in a dramatic reading of the Gospel during Lent?

Ordinarily only a deacon, priest, or bishop is allowed to proclaim the Gospel at Mass. The USCCB’s Committee On Divine Worship reminds us that: “The proclamation of the Gospel is reserved to the deacon, if he is present, or to a priest” (Introduction to the Book of the Gospels, 8). An exception is made during Holy Week, when the laity may join in the reading of the Passion. But the Church stipulates that a priest, who ministers in the person of Christ, must read the words attributed to Christ. 

Basically, a parish should not be dramatizing the Gospel on the Sundays of Lent—period. There is no official Church documentation to support such practice. (Fr. J respects this preference and limits the practice of multiple readers to the Good Friday service and not on Palm Sunday.

Lord, in this season of Lent, quiet my heart and draw me closer to You. Help me to let go of what distracts me, to walk humbly in Your ways, and to love as You have loved me. Renew my spirit, strengthen my faith, and prepare me to rejoice in the hope of Easter. Amen.