| 8 Wednesday | |
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| violet | Ash Wednesday | |
| 169th International Women's Day (est. 1911) | |
| | Mass of Ash Wednesday; after the sign of the cross and greeting, the penitential act is omitted.
Preface of Lent III or IV. |
| | [219] Joel 2: 12-18; Ps 51:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14+17; 2 Cor 5:20-6:2; Matt 6:1-6, 16-18 |
| | (Switch to Vol. II of the Lit. of the Hours.)
Hours of Ash Wednesday; Psalter Week 4 today and until Saturday.
Today at Morning Prayer, the psalms of Friday, Week 3 may be used. |
| | The celebrant blesses and distributes ashes after the homily.
Other persons may be associated with the bishop or priest in the imposition of ashes, e.g., deacons, special ministers of communion and other lay persons, when there is true pastoral need. |
| Special ministers of communion and deacons may bring blessed ashes to the sick and those confined to their homes. If a minister is not available, a member of the family or another person may bring the blessed ashes to a shut-in, using one of the formulas in the Roman Missal to impose ashes. |
| For pastoral reasons the blessing and distribution of ashes may take place outside Mass. In this case, the entire liturgy of the word should be celebrated: entrance song, opening prayer, readings and chants, homily, blessing and distribution of ashes, and general intercessions. See the Book of Blessings, nos. 1656ff. |
| Anniversary: | 84th anniversary of the death of P. Arthur Clarke (79) d. 1995 at Lusaka, Zambia.  |
| Anniversary: | 80th anniversary of the death of P. Dennis Flannery (68) d. 1999 at Dublin, Ireland. |
| Anniversary: | 74th anniversary of the death of P. Robert Kelly (79) d. 2005 at Lusaka, Zambia. |
On this day in our Jesuit history...
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| 1558 | Fr. Nicholas Guadan, disguised as a peddler, entered Scotland as a papal nuncio to strengthen Mary Queen of Scots in her allegiance to the faith. |
| 1566 | The Diet of Augsburg, Germany, Peter Canisius, Jeronimo Nadal Diego Ledesma hold public disputations with the Reformation leaders. They were appointed by St. Pius V. |
| 1836 | A Decree is issued whereby the Society of Jesus loses the property of the Holy House of Loyola. In the previous year, the Society was dissolved in Spain. |
| 1890 | Oswald von Nell-Breuning, S.J. is born. He was an expert in the social teaching of the Church, and lived to be over 100 years old. |
| 1916 | Letter of Fr. General Ledochowski, De Doctrina Sancti Thomae magis, magisque in Societate fovenda. |
| 1982 | Mitchell Dahood, S.J. dies in Rome, Scripture scholar. President of Catholic Biblical Association, and wrote the commentary on the Psalms for the Anchor Bible. |
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