The Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacra-ments asked priests to take special anti-COVID-19 precautions this year when distributing ashes on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 17, inclu-ding sprinkling ashes on the top of people’s heads rather than using them to make a cross on people’s foreheads.
The congregation’s note on the “distribution of ashes in time of pandemic” was published on the congregation’s website Jan. 12 and directs priests to say “the prayer for blessing the ashes” and then sprinkle “the ashes with holy water, without saying anything.”
“Then he addresses all those present and only once says the formula as it appears in the Roman Missal, applying it to all in general: ‘Repent and believe in the Gospel’ or ‘Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.’”
“The priest then cleanses his hands, puts on a face mask and distributes the ashes to those who come to him or, if appropriate, he goes to those who are standing in their places,” it said. “The priest takes the ashes and sprink-les them on the head of each one without saying anything.”

Most Catholics, who grew up seeing women at the altar reading from the Bible and serving at Mass, wondered what was improved when Pope Francis changed canon law this month, purportedly to allow women to participate in such services.
Although women have been taking care of these ministries at local bishops’ discretion, they were barred from being instituted as lectors or acolytes because church law did not allow it. These minor orders were reserved only for men until now, touted as preparation for priestly ordina-tion.
On Jan. 11, The Pope chang-ed one word in Canon 230. The law originally said: “Laymen who have the age and skills, determined by decree by the Episcopal Conference, can be permanently employed, through the established liturgical rite, for the ministries of readers and acolytes; however, this confer-ment does not give them the right to sustenance or remuneration by the Church.” Pope Francis changed the opening word, making it “laypeople” to include women.  Pope Francis is pushing the Church to be more open to women, but slowly and carefully. These orders had been part of the all-male priesthood in the Catholic Church since the Coun-cil of Trent in the 16th century.

Pope Francis has rejected an appeal to reinstate expelled Augustinian monk Martin Luther on the 500th anniversary of his excommunication, which falls on Jan. 3, 2021. The pontiff’s highly significant overtures towards Lutherans over the last five years had raised hopes in ecumenical circles for the withdrawal of the bull of excommunication, Decet Romanum Pontificem, issued by Pope Leo X on Jan. 3, 1521. Church Militant has learned that Francis will not revoke Luther’s excommunication to mark the anniversary but instead use the occasion to intensify dialogue with Lutherans. “There will be a special press release on Jan. 4 from both the Lutheran World Federation and the Vatican on the steps being taken that lead us further on the path from conflict to communion,” Professor Dr. Dirk G. Lange told Church Militant.