Catholic priests in the Diocese of Kalookan will distribute ashes to the faithful who would not be able to physically attend the observance of Ash Wednesday on February 17.
Bishop Pablo Virgilio David of Kalookan has allowed his priests to distribute ashes to people “especially for those who cannot yet attend Mass physically.”
“They can follow the Mass through the live streaming and impose the ashes on themselves while it is being done in the parish church,” said the prelate.
Alene Songco, a catechist at St. Gabriel parish church in Kalookan, said ashes, which are placed in a small plastic sachet, are already being distributed to the elderly and the sick.
“We are targeting to distribute 1,000 pieces,” she said, adding that the ashes are for the elderly, the sick, and the young who are not allowed to go out of their homes.
Being distributed with the ashes is a prayer and a short note explaining the observance of Ash Wednesday.
Ash Wednesday officially ushers in the start of the Lenten season in the Catholic Church.
