Dear Folks,

It has been a few years since I answered these two questions, which someone asked me this week. So, I thought I’ d address these again.

“Father, why are the statues covered up?”

The origin of this seems a little obscure, but it is traceable to a 9th century custom in Germany, or to the even more ancient practice of public penance. With public penance, the entire congregation was received into the order of penitents with Ashes symbolically placed on the head (remember Ash Wednesday?) The penitents were expelled from the church, kneeling at the door asking for prayers (glad we don’t do that anymore!) and the entire congregation would be symbolically expelled by the veiling of the statues. Sin separates us from God, from our friends and even from the saints in heaven.

Furthermore, have you noticed that when you are carrying a particularly burdensome cross, you can’t see beyond the present moment? It is as if the weight of the cross blinds your spiritual vision. is is why we try to train ourselves to remember the good things the Lord has done for us, so that when we are bearing the blinding weight of the cross, we might not lose sight of Heaven!

Thus the statues in our churches can be veiled, to echo in a symbolic way this separation from the Lord, angels, saints, and each other. The Church allows us to veil them beginning this weekend, as the passion week and weight of the cross loom larger and larger! Veiling statues is an option, and one that only more recently seems to be chosen in a variety of parishes to draw us into the mystery of salvation by her symbols.

“Father, why are the candles on the front of the altar?”

There are many options for candle placement. The late Pope Benedict XVI, favored and encouraged the very placement with which I have become very comfortable. The purpose of this is to center the Liturgy on Jesus Christ. We gather to celebrate the paschal mystery of His suffering, death, and resurrection. Every Mass is directed to the worship of God and movement towards the East from whence the glorious resurrected Lord will come at the end of time. This arrangement serves to emphasize visually and in symbol the common direction of priest and people towards Christ.

Some folks receive this as a distraction, as it visually interrupts their line of sight. For those who are affected thus, I am glad that our church is sufficiently round and large so that they can find a seat with unimpeded sight lines. On this point, Pope Benedict XVI wrote, “The common turning to the East during the Eucharistic Prayer remains essential. is is not a case of accidentals, but of essentials…. What matters is looking together at the Lord…. Is the cross disruptive during Mass? Is the priest more important than Our Lord?”

With you I am on a journey towards fuller union with Jesus Christ in every Mass. For you I stand in service at the altar to offer in persona Christi. T ogether let us always seek Him.

If you’d like to read more on this topic, Google “Putting Christ at the Center: On the Benedictine Arrangement.”

And a reminder that Palm Sunday will be in the Church, but Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday will all be celebrated at the Fredericksburg Convention Center (formerly the FXBG Expo Center).

pax et bonum,

Father John Mosimann