Fr. Iweh says he's "black Irish" ya know. Maybe he'll give us a dispensation. (For those who don't know him, Fr. Iweh is from Nigeria... :))
Here's an article from the Seattle Times:
Luck of Irish not as lucky for church calendar
By Janet I. Tu
Seattle Times religion reporter
With Easter coming early this year — March 23 — St. Patrick's Day will, for the first time since 1940, fall during Holy Week, that most sacred of times leading up to Easter.
That poses something of a timing problem:
In the Roman Catholic Church, Holy Week is set aside for Christians to commemorate events such as Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, the Last Supper and Christ's crucifixion.
No other religious festivities are supposed to occur — such as Masses celebrating St. Patrick's Day on March 17.
In the Seattle Archdiocese, minor adjustments have been made. A Mass for Peace in Ireland, which the archbishop has traditionally celebrated each St. Patrick's Day at a Protestant church, will be held this year on Saturday, March 15.
The Church of St. Patrick in Tacoma is moving its celebration to March 9.
Secular festivities, such as parades and celebrating with friends, technically can still go on during Holy Week.
"We're going to celebrate anyway," said Thomas Quinlan, a retired construction inspector in Purdy, Pierce County, who says he's going to meet friends for dinner, "maybe sing a couple of old Irish ballads."
Patrick McAleese, owner of Kells Irish Restaurant & Pub in Seattle, says he expects no difference this year in the number of people celebrating. "For us, St. Patrick's always has been a weeklong event, anyway."
The St. Patrick's Day parade, organized by the Irish Heritage Club of Seattle, has for several years been held on the Saturday closest to St. Patrick's Day to make it easier for families and other participants who might not be able to attend during the week. This year it will be held on Saturday, March 15.
John Keane, chairman of the club's Irish Week committee, said he's used to celebrating during solemn times, since St. Patrick's Day always falls during the 40 days of Lent, which this year began Wednesday.
"Lent is a time of penance. And here's St. Patrick's Day right in the middle of it," Keane said. "You can imagine there's a conflict there sometimes. I try to do some penance every year to mark Lent. But I kind of do give myself a dispensation around St. Patrick's Day."
In other places, the St. Patrick's Day scheduling conflict has resulted in more official moves.
The Vatican approved a request by Ireland's bishops to move St. Patrick's Day to March 15 this year for Ireland only. A bishop in Columbus, Ohio, has asked local pastors to celebrate the saint a week early.
Easter falls early this year because the Catholic Church follows a combination of the lunar and solar calendars in determining the date.
"We've not had such an early Easter since 1913," said the Rev. Thomas Murphy, chairman of Seattle University's history department.
Janet I. Tu: 206-464-2272
It would be nice to get our corned beef and cabbage this year. I like the idea of celebrating it early. I can't imagine St. Patrick would object.
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