LOCAL — “It’s incurable.” Those are the blunt words every dermatologist has told Fr. Anthony Gomez of St. Hildegard’s Catholic Church after he discovered zits on his thumb. Gomez found the acne on the print of his thumb when he woke up on Thursday following a long series of Ash Wednesday Masses.

“I couldn’t believe it. I’ve been offering three Ash Wednesday Masses every year for ten years, but I’ve never had this issue.”

Gomez booked a dermatology appointment the next morning, but was not prepared for the shocking news he received on Friday: the acne is incurable. “They had never heard of such a things as ‘thumb acne.’ They had seen various skin disorders and pimples that develop all over the body, but this was a ‘new breed’ as they told me.”

When pressed for comment, Dr. Sandra Chan of the United States Dermatological Association said that Gomez’s situation “is unique. It clearly comes from a combination of stress from having all of those Ash Wednesday Masses, and touching his thumb to multiple sweaty foreheads.” She added finally, “He will suffer with this for the rest of his life.”