Anyone who knows me even a little bit, knows that Palm Sunday is one of my favorite days of the year! That being the case, I’m sure you can imagine how sad I am that we have to celebrate this Palm Sunday so differently than usual. The same, of course, is true of Holy Week and Easter. While we will most certainly post the Liturgies on our parish website – where I hope you will prayerfully watch them – it’s just not the same!

Perhaps we can take some comfort and hope from the example of some of our Catholic ancestors who likewise had to maintain their faith without being able to celebrate Mass or receive Holy Communion. One such group was the Catholics of Japan, who were without a priest for nearly 300 years! By the early 1600’s, the Japanese government had either killed or exiled every Catholic priest in the country – hoping to stamp out the Catholic faith.

But the good Catholics of that country maintained – and even passed on – their faith just the same! Parents taught the Gospel, catechism, and prayers to their children. While they could not have Mass or receive Holy Communion, they prayed and received Spiritual Communion by asking Jesus to come at least spiritually into their hearts.