How should Catholics properly dispose of blessed palms?
How should Catholics properly dispose of blessed palms?
Question: How do you get rid of Palms (from Palm Sunday) what if there isn’t a location available to either dig a hole for burning or burying them? I value your assistance.
— Eileen, via email.
Answer: You can take them to your parish. It is typical for parishes to get old and dried palm fronds and either incinerate them to produce ashes for Ash Wednesday or use them in the Easter Fire. If you are unable to deliver them to the church or lack a yard or garden, you can take them to a nearby forest and bury them there, or at the very least, place them in a secluded area to avoid them getting crushed. Additionally, you may burn palms at home and handle the ashes in a comparable manner.
Msgr. Charles Pope is the pastor of Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian in Washington, D.C., and writes for the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. at blog.adw.org. Send questions to msgrpope@osv.com.
