Did You Hear the One About?

Last night...New Orleans...Midnight...the police announce that Mardi Gras had ended and begin clearing the streets. Ash Wednesday had begun and with it Lent.

Easter is the first Sunday after the first Full Moon after the Vernal Equinox. Lent, a period of fasting, penance, retrospection and alms-giving begins 40 days before that. Well, kind of...today is March 9 and Easter is April 24. If you do the math, that's 46 days. Sundays don't count as Lenten Days. (Note: this is Roman Catholic. There are slight differences in the observance by other denominations and the orthodox churches).

Lent ends on Easter Sunday. Again, sort of...as of the Second Vatican Council, Good Friday and Holy Saturday are no longer considered Lent, but part of the Easter Triduum. Confused yet?  Just take two stations of the cross and call me in the morning.

As an altar boy, I enjoyed serving Mass between Holy Thursday and Easter Sunday. In respect for Christ's suffering, the sanctus bell is replaced by the crotalus (clapper in the vernacular). Getting the full sound out of this required subtle wrist action.


The only thing cooler was being a thurifer. You had to know how to swing the thurible to keep the incense from falling out and burning properly. The thurifer (just love using that word) also had to know the sequence of swings. At Christ the King, those who screwed up felt the wrath of Monseigneur McIntyre especially if you were his grand-nephew - lucky me.

So begins the celebration of the passion of Christ. On Good Friday, he was crucified, died and was buried. On the third day, the stone of the sepulcher was rolled away, he arose and walked out. If he sees his shadow, it's six more weeks of Lent.

Quite a lead in, just to relate one of the most sacrilegious jokes I know- as ever BB

"God is a comedian playing to an audience too afraid to laugh."  - Voltaire