Several months ago I had planned to have a birthday party for the Church on Pentecost Sunday. The goal was to have an intergenerational event to encourage people to celebrate and learn more about their faith while joining together in community. The plan, like so many others, has gone out the window and I have spent the past 2+ months trying to encourage faith formation and interaction online. Looking forward, we will likely continue with online faith formation for awhile. Anyone who is interested in helping the parish create a path forward for faith formation in the time of COVID, please email me ([email protected]) to get a link to a Zoom meeting we are having June 3 at 6:30pm.
This has been an unbelievable few months. Sometimes it can be too much. This morning I started my day at my desk as I often do, going to YouTube to find some instrumental music to listen to while I pray. Before I could select some instrumental music, YouTube suggested a video to me- Fr. Rob Galea and Jon Carlo singing a cover of Matt Maher’s song “Lord, I Need You/Senor Te Necesito.” It was exactly what I needed today after listening to too many reports about the virus along with stories of outbreaks of violence in cities around the country. I’ve heard this song before and by various performers, but today it hit home. Here is a link in case you need this song today too: https://youtu.be/sqZrOLSUhE0. One thing that has been hard on may people is not being able to be physically present in church. Last week the parish opened for private prayer. There are some safety protocols in place for the protection of Father Connolly, the staff, and other parishioners. There is a limit of 10 people in church at a time so we ask that you call first to check on availability. You can also call in advance and reserve a time. We ask that you be symptom free (no fevers, headaches, coughs, loss of taste/smell, difficulty breathing, body aches, etc.) for at least 72 hours (3 full days) before coming into church. You should also wear a mask before entering the building (if you do not have one, we can provide you with a disposable one). You will be asked to sign in at the Manning Hall office doors. When you sign in you will be given a piece of paper; you will write down your name and take that paper to your seat in church. You will leave that paper where you sat when you leave so that we know where to sanitize. All books have been removed from the pews (you can bring your own printed resources if you wish). The Eucharistic Chapel has been closed due to the small space and the lack of air circulation. Please do not sit near a seat that already has a piece of paper or where another person is already sitting. We also ask that you leave by the Manning Hall doors so that we can keep track of the number of people in the building. All books have been removed from the pews (you can bring your own printed resources if you wish). The Eucharistic Chapel has been closed due to the small space and the lack of air circulation. We do not yet know when public Masses will resume. When they do it will not be like we have usually had Mass in the past. Safety protocols for Mass are being developed as I write this. When it is time to return to Mass, the parish will need an army of volunteers to help guide people through the new protocols. We will need more ushers and eucharistic ministers. We also need people willing to get trained to live stream Mass. We will need two people to livestream a weekend Mass. We would like to have multiple tech teams so that the same team is not responsible for all Masses.
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Kelley TanseyFaith Formation Coordinator Archives
June 2021
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