Dear parishioners,
Whether you are ready for it or not, Ash Wednesday will be upon us this week! While we still have a few days to think of the penitential action(s) we will be taking on throughout the course of Lent, it is good to be reminded of the obligations of fasting and abstinence, as stipulated by the law of the Church, and applied by the Bishops of the United States:
Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are obligatory days of fasting and abstinence for Catholics. In addition, Fridays during Lent are obligatory days of abstinence.
For members of the Latin Catholic Church, the norms on fasting are obligatory from age 18 until age 59. When fasting, a person is permitted to eat one full meal, as well as two smaller meals that together are not equal to a full meal. The norms concerning abstinence from meat are binding upon members of the Latin Catholic Church from age 14 onwards.
If possible, the fast on Good Friday is continued until the Easter Vigil (on Holy Saturday night) as the “paschal fast” to honor the suffering and death of the Lord Jesus and to prepare ourselves to share more fully and to celebrate more readily his Resurrection.
Of course, when it comes to abstaining from meat on Fridays, our Knights of Columbus Councils are ready to help all of us put that into practice with their annual Lenten fish fries! The Paulding Knights will be having a lunch (11 A.M. – 1 P.M.) and supper (4 P.M. – 7 P.M.) option on every Friday in March, and on April 1 and 8.
The Payne Knights Fish Fry dates are still to be determined. They will be announced as they become available.
Please come and enjoy a good meal and support the work of the Knights! Please note that this schedule is dependent upon the fish suppliers having enough fish available for our KofC Councils to buy. If anything changes, we will be sure to inform everyone as soon as possible.
We are planning to have Stations of the Cross at our usual times/locations: every Monday at noon in Paulding, every Wednesday at 7:00 P.M. in Antwerp, and every Friday at 2:30 P.M. in Payne with our school.
Lastly, be sure to mark your calendars for our Days of Grace:
March 23 in Antwerp: 8:30 – 10:00 A.M., 12:00 – 2:00 P.M., and 5:00 – 8:00 P.M.
March 30 in Paulding: 8:30 – 10:00 A.M., 12:00 – 2:00 P.M., and 4:00 – 7:00 P.M.
April 6 in Payne: 8:30 – 10:00 A.M., 12:00 – 2:00 P.M. and 5:00 – 8:00 P.M.
Hoping you have a grace-filled Lent!
Fr. Ammanniti
