Ambrosian Rite

So, this time of year is the end of Carnevale, the start of Lent, Ash Wednesday, that sort of thing. This being a largely Catholic country, there's been lots of going ons for these events. I was chatting about this with my mother, who asked me if I saw lots of folks with ashes last week, and I realized, no, none. Not at the university, not at the street market. And, in an unrelated thought, I knew Milan's carnival season lasted until last weekend, a few days after Venice's. Another (seemingly) unrelated thought was the "Ambrosian" adjective that seemed added on to a lot of the paperwork at the Duomo.



So, last night, I went down to the Duomo, and it all clicked. I headed down to see the big light show they were doing on the outside of the cathedral that they have been advertising everywhere, and realized it was about Quaresima "Lent" and that it was the third day of Lent. Tuesday, the 28th... It's because of the Ambrosian Rite thing! Only here in Milan, really. It even gets a special mention on the Wikipedia Lent page. Carnival is four days longer under Ambrosian Rite, lasting until sabato grasso Shrove Saturday. There is no Ash Wednesday!



The first four Tuesdays in Lent here are dedicated to the stations of the cross. Last night was the first night. The light show debuted on the cathedral at 8, followed by Cardinal Scola's first big mass for the stations.



These four big masses are being televised on broadcast TV here. The Duomo was the most crowded I have ever seen it! The stations of the cross masses are pretty cool. They show off some great painting depicting the portion of the crucifixion, and the description of the painting is part of the service. They have more music than usual, with a full choir. Some Latin mass stuff. And the acting out of the stations of the cross. Since the crowds are so huge they throw open the big doors.



Anyway, enough about that Catholic stuff. On to the light show! The crowds were crazy in the Piazza Duomo. I spotted this lounge that they have been building on the roof near the Galleria over the course of the last couple of months. Looks done!



The show was pretty cool, I ended up watching it three times. The videos I made aren't great. I took them handheld and unfortunately, my camera won't let you set the focal length zone for video... But some of the photos are really great!