The Traditional Use of “Incensi” among the Annang People: Liturgical Opportunities and Challenges in Ikot Ekpene Catholic Diocese, Nigeria

Almost every major world religion and tribal spiritualities light plant parts in worship to seek greater connection to the divine. Incense is defined as a material that is burned to produce an odour which is also referred to as the perfume itself that is produced from the burning of plant. Many people light incense sticks in their homes just for the sweet smell and the ability it has to transform space. Others too in our world today may have a stigma connecting incense sticks and illegal drug use. Many of us who have been Catholics may have witnessed the swinging of censers, filling the Church with sweet-smelling resins. The tradition of using incense in the liturgy goes back to ancient Hebrew worship, as recorded in the Psalms: “Let my prayer be set forth in Thy sight as the incense” (Ps 141:2). Incense as often used as part of a purification ritual seems to have lost its symbolisms and proper use of it in the Church as well as the decline of its use. The real problem here is that many faithful hardly know the real reason and purpose why incense is an important part of the Catholic Mass. Do people fully understand the use and symbolism of incense during the liturgical celebrations? Do the traditional use of incense offers some opportunities or challenges in the Church liturgical rites? The purpose of this study is to investigate, stimulate and sensitize the Church and all the Christian faithful of the symbolism of incense which have become optional or none use and to take effective action in reclaiming the lost symbolism and proper use of incense. Perhaps a better understanding of the traditional use of incense may help or enhance the use and importance of the symbolism of incense in our liturgical celebrations. Maybe some elements found in the traditional use of incense, the Sacred Scripture and the Church’s practice may enrich and recover the lost symbolism of incense. And may be by organizing Liturgical Seminars/workshops to seminarians and young religious in formation houses it may address the essential elements in the way incense is use.

Shanks v Unilever: the sweet smell of success

Shanks v Unilever Plc & Ors [2019] UKSC 45 (23 October 2019) The UK Supreme Court has allowed an appeal from a Court of Appeal ruling and found that Professor Ian Shanks was entitled to £2 million in employee compensation under sections 40(1) and 41 of the Patents Act 1977.

Transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses provide insight into the volatile compounds of citrus leaves and flowers

Background Previous reports have mainly focused on the volatiles in citrus fruits, and there have been few reports about the volatiles in citrus leaves and flowers. However, citrus leaves and flowers are also rich in volatile compounds with unique aromas. Here, to investigate the volatiles in citrus leaves and flowers, volatile profiling was performed on leaves from 62 germplasms and flowers from 25 germplasms. Results In total, 196 and 82 volatile compounds were identified from leaves of 62 citrus germplasms and flowers of 25 citrus germplasms, respectively. The dominant volatile terpenoids were more diverse in citrus leaves than in peels. A total of 34 volatile terpenoids were commonly detected in the leaves of at least 20 germplasms, among which 31 were overaccumulated in the leaves of wild or semiwild germplasms. This result was consistent with the high expression levels of five genes and one key gene of the mevalonate and 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol-4-phosphate (MEP) biosynthetic pathways, respectively, as well as the low expression levels of geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthase of the MEP pathway, relative to the levels in cultivars. Fully open flowers showed increased levels of four terpene alcohols and a decrease in sabinene content compared with balloon-stage flowers, especially in sweet orange. A monoterpene synthase gene was identified and functionally characterized as a sabinene synthase in vitro. Conclusions Collectively, our results suggest that 31 important terpenoids are abundant in wild or semiwild citrus germplasms, possibly because of a negative effect of domestication on the volatiles in citrus leaves. The sweet smell of fully open flowers may be attributed to increased levels of four terpene alcohols. In addition, a sabinene synthase gene was identified by combined transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses.

Conamomum odorum , a new species of Zingiberaceae from central Vietnam

Conamomum odorum is described as a new species from Khanh Hoa Province, Central Vietnam. It is characterized by sweet smell, striate and narrowly elliptic leaf leaves with short petiole and ligule, ovoid congested inflorescence, pubescent calyx, cream corolla lobes, yellow, obovate and reflexed labellum with median red bands at base and hairy ovary. The new species is illustrated with detailed photographs of key characters and morphologically compared to its closest congeners C. piereanum and C. rubidum. A distribution map of the genus in Vietnam is provided.