Warning

My good friend Sharon alerted me to a new study about which, at first glance, some of my parishioners might be concerned.

It would seem that a prolonged use of incense can the risk of cancer. Curiously, the risk of cancers of the respiratory tract is increased but not of the lungs.

The author of the study, Dr. Jeppe Friborg, said, "frequent use in rooms where people live should be minimized, or at least sufficient ventilation should be secured."

Now, before you get all up in a panic, the study concerned incense as used in Singapore and, as anyone who has paid any attention will know, asian incense seems quite different than the incense used in the Catholic Church.

I'd like to ask the scientists involved in this study if they examined the particular varieties of incense. For example, most oriental incense I have seen comes in the form of sticks. Church incense, however, comes in other a rocky substance or a plant-like substance (some of us like to mix the two together, but the sensory outcome can be risky if you aren't careful).

Moreover, does a particular "flavor" affect the risk for cancer more than another (I have at least eight different flavors in the sacristy at this moment)? What about incense from different manufacturers (I have incense from at least four different places right now)?

Oh, and don't forget: I highly doubt that you can call the use of incense at Mass and other liturgies "long-term" or ever "frequent." It certainly isn't daily, which is the use with which the study concerned itself. And your church is more than likely ventilated well enough. If it isn't, open the door or a window.