As the Year of the Real Presence draws to a close, the Diocese of Allentown is making plans for a Solemn Mass of Corpus Christi and Eucharistic Procession to formally end the year on June 19.
Participants in the 3 p.m. Mass and Procession, to be held at Most Blessed Sacrament Parish, Bally, will be granted a Plenary Indulgence by Bishop Alfred Schlert.
An indulgence is an application of God’s Divine Mercy to remove the effects of past sin. It can be understood as a kind of amnesty from punishment in the afterlife.
Even after we go to Confession and are absolved of our sins, temporal punishment for that sin still remains. Temporal punishment is the time needed to heal the wound of sin.
This healing can occur while we are still alive – as we perform works of mercy and charity, prayer, and penance – or after death, through time in Purgatory.
A Plenary Indulgence heals the wound of sin while we are still alive, reducing or eliminating the need for time in Purgatory before we go to Heaven.
To receive any indulgence, a person also must make a good Confession to a priest, receive Holy Communion, and pray for the intentions of the Pope, all within a reasonable time before or after the granting of the indulgence. An indulgence can be used by the person receiving it, or it can be applied to a deceased loved one.
Most Blessed Sacrament is the oldest parish in the Diocese of Allentown, founded in 1741. The Mass will include a procession of participants, including many priests of the Diocese, which will move outdoors, weather permitting, where three separate altars will be set up for veneration.
Most Blessed Sacrament is a beautiful and historic church, but space inside is somewhat limited, so the faithful are asked to register for the Mass here.
The Mass also will be livestreamed.
Watch for more details of the closing Mass and procession in upcoming issues of AD Today and the AD Times.
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