Time in the desert

In another blog someone was complaining that Anglican and Episcopalian congregations along with their priests and people may spend some time during which they will be asked not to celebrate or receive the sacraments. While I am grateful that the timeline establishing the Ordinariate in England and Wales provides for a speedy transition, a period of time that allows for a bit of a journey through the desert is a good thing. Becoming a Catholic parish requires more than hiring a sign-painter to fix the sign out front. And it means more than just learning how to celebrate the liturgy in a slightly different fashion. Becoming a Catholic is a change more at the level of being than of doing, and it is a good think to let that change of identity take deep root. I don't mean to say that it should necessarily be a Lenten time of fasting and repentance, but more like Advent, a time of heartfelt longing and hope-filled prayer. It does not have to be comfortable - a bit of discomfort can be very powerful. But let it be a time focused on the soon-to-come joyful fulfillment of the promise.