Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, between February 4 and March 10, and ends at the Easter Vigil. Two of its supplies are seasonal listings that vanish after the feast: ashes and palms. The Paschal candle is bought once a year and the popular sizes sell out. Everything else is stock the sacristy already holds, checked and counted in January.
Order in January
- Ashes for Ash Wednesday: a jar or bag of palm ash serves a parish's Masses and school service. Parishes that burn last year's palms still keep a jar as a reserve.
- The Paschal candle, decorated with the current year or plain, sized to the stand: 2 x 36 or 2 1/2 x 36 for most parishes, 3 inches and up for a large church. Order by mid-January.
- Violet vestments checked and cleaned: chasuble and stole for Lent, a rose set for Laetare Sunday if used, red for Palm Sunday and Good Friday, white for Holy Thursday and the Vigil.
- Stations of the Cross booklets for Friday devotions, and a set of Stations if the chapel has none.
Order by the fourth week of Lent
- Palm strips for Palm Sunday, one per person plus 10 percent, shipped fresh the week before. Folded palm crosses are an alternative that does not need to be fresh.
- Congregational candles with drip protectors for the Easter Vigil, in the 6-inch size that lasts through the Liturgy of the Word.
- Incense and charcoal for Holy Thursday, the Vigil and Easter Sunday; check the roll is fresh.
- Baptismal candles and white garments for the catechumens baptised at the Vigil; holy water bottles for the blessing of water.
The Triduum
Holy Thursday needs white vestments, a lavabo set and towels for the washing of feet, extra hosts for the reservation, and a place of repose with candles. Good Friday needs red vestments, a crucifix for veneration and no candles on the stripped altar. The Vigil needs the new Paschal candle, the fire, the congregational candles, the baptismal supplies and the Easter altar linens. A written checklist for each day, kept with the vestments, prevents the yearly search for the incense boat.
Questions
When do palms arrive?
Fresh palm strips ship in the week before Palm Sunday and should be kept cool and misted until used. Order them by the fourth week of Lent; palm crosses can be ordered any time.
What size Paschal candle?
Match the stand's socket: most parishes use a 2 to 2 1/2 inch candle 36 inches tall. Measure the socket before ordering, and order in January.
Is a rose vestment needed for Laetare Sunday?
It is optional. Rose may be worn on the Fourth Sunday of Lent and the Third Sunday of Advent; violet is always correct.