‘Between the daffodil and the strawberry, clarity will come’
TRADITIONALLY at this time of year, preparations are being made for children to take part in their First Holy Communion and Confirmations. However, with church doors remaining closed as we continue to navigate Level 5 Covid restrictions, along with hotels, catering companies, clothes shops etc, it seems everything is very much in limbo once again as we wait to hear what level of re-opening we can look forward to.
‘I suppose we’re in the same position as the hotels and other event organisers and that type of thing,’ Communications Officer for the Diocese of Ferns Fr John Carroll said. ‘We will just have to wait for clarity. It’s now starting to look like they’ll have to be put back. It seems to be later and later. I suppose we’ll seek further clarification in the middle of March and I’d imagine a lot will hinge on what happens with this new Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
In the meantime, we’re as in the dark as everyone else unfortunately. Maybe the sensible thing to do would be to catch our breath and give ourselves a little longer to get clear of this thing. However, as I said to someone the other day, between the daffodil and the strawberry, the clarity will come.’
A further update was issued to parishes last week, which stated: ‘With restrictions in place at present, no ceremony can take place. It is envisaged that ceremonies can really only be planned once the restrictions for schools and churches have been sufficiently lifted as to permit celebration.’
Also, it was revealed that priests will be the ministers of Confirmation in their own parishes, a role usually reserved for the Bishop, and all were asked to liaise with local schools to open discussions about how best to proceed when permissible.