abstinence dispensed

This is an amusing phrase Hannah told me about earlier in Lent. I imagine most of those reading and intimately familiar with church liturgy know what this means: “abstinence,” the precise meaning of which varies with context, is encouraged or required on certain days, unless some cause such as illness or a superceding church holiday arises, in which case the requirement is dispensed with. To the rest of us, it sounds like a machine that gives out abstinence, carefully placed next to the condom dispenser.

This has been another fun jaunt through the Book of Common Prayer.