Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1906-02-16
LENT OPENS FEB.2
Regulations and instructions Is
sued for Guidance OF
Catholics.
SPECIAL DAY OBSERVANCES
Frequent Attendance at Church Ser
vices Urged in Order to Promote
Spirit of Season.

Feb 2S will be Ash Wednesday, the
season of Lent opening then. The
regulations for the observance of the
period have been issued for the in
struction of members of the Catholic
church. and pastors are asked TO read
and explain the rules to their cOngre-
cations before the beginning of Lent
This holy season. say the instruc
tiOns. should be faithfully observed
by Catholics, and in order to promote
the spirit of penance and prayer pecu-
liar to the time, they should be invited
whenever it is practicable to attend
in church the extra devotional services
which are earnestly recommended TO
be held at least twice a week, and
which might consist, on Wednesdays
of the recitation of part of the
rosary, a practical instruction and the
benedictiOn of the blessed sacrament;
on Fridays, the appropriate exercises
would be stations of the cross"
The Regulations.
The regulations read as follows:
l. Ash Wednesday falls on the 2Sth
of February.
2. All of the days of Lent are fast
ing except the Sundays.
- All persons who have completed
their 21st year, unless legitimately
dispensed, are obliged to keep the
fast. Custom allows a cup of coffee,
tea or chocolate, with small piece
of bread to be taken in the morning.
In the evening a collation. not exceed
ing the fourth part of an ordinary meal
is allowed.
f. By dispensation the use of flesh
meat is allowed at the principal meal
on Mondays. Tuesdays. Thursdays and
Saturdays, except the Saturday in En-
Der week and the Saturday in Holy
week
3. The use of flesh and fieshmeat
is not allowed at the same meal during
Lent
6. All under 81 years of age, those
who are engaged in hard work, the
sick and convalescent and persons who
cannot fast without serious injury to
health. are exempt from the fast. Per
sons excused from fasting on account
of tender age, are not restricted to the
use of fieshmeat at only one meal on
the days on which it is allowed. Those
who entertain any reasonable doubt
about their obligations to fast or abb
stain. ought to apply to their pastors
for advice or dispensation.
Z. The time for fulfilling the
Paschal duty is extended in this dio-
cese from the first Sunday in Lent to
Trinity Sunday.
LabOrers Excepted.
In virtue of special facilities given
in a letter of the Sacred Congrega-
ton of Propaganda TO the Ordinaries
of the United States on the 18th of
March. 1895, and renewed in 1905. |
hereby grant to all laborers in this dio-
cese permission to eat meat at one
meal on days of abstinence.
From this permission, however, are
excluded all Fridays in the year, Ash
Wednesday, Friday and Saturday of
Holy week, and the Virgil of Christ
mas 1t should be remarked that on
those days on which the use of meat
is thus allowed, fish and flesh cannot
be eaten at the same meal
This permission TO eat meat on GER
tain days of abstinence extends not
only to the laborers themselves, but TO
their family, SO that every member OF
their family participates in the privi-
lege of the indult.
Those who make use of thic dispen-
sation are earnestly eXhorted to per-
form some other work of penance on
those days, such as abstaining from
the use of intoxicating drink or some
other act of modification.