3. Confessions. Friday confessions are available. I've added some evening slots as well. Sign ups are here.
4. Fr. Gratton will return to the parishes this weekend! It will be good to have him back. Even during his time on orders with the VT national guard, he's done a lot of work behind the scenes here, answering all my questions, and doing the things I couldn't. He been eager to come back to you all.
5. That means it's time for me bid adieu. There may be one or two more emails from me, but that will be all. So thank you for your warm welcome, your appreciative spirit, and your faith and patience in this time. C. S. Lewis once said that Christians never really say goodbye, because we are all aiming at the same destination - so if we don't meet before then, may God give us the grace arrive there, and meet then!
6. Soft Reopening: Monday, June 1st!!
Daily Masses open up Monday, June 1st, and then June 6/7 will be the first weekend where we can have significant numbers back in Church! Here follows the essential info:
Daily Mass requires no sign up, but only following the safety protocols (described below).
Weekend Masses will requiring signing up, since we will limit the numbers to 25% of the building capacity. That is roughly 35 at St. Anthony's, 20 or 25 at St. Elizabeth's, and 45 at OLA.
We will send out a link for signing up that will be available on the website, as well. You can also call the rectory or email.
You will be socially distanced in the church, six feet or more apart. Families may sit together, but each person in the family counts toward the final number of allowed participants. Sections of the church will be roped off.
What are you being asked to do for your part in this reopening?
The Bishop has extended his dispensation from Sunday Mass throughout this pandemic, especially if you are particularly vulnerable. If you’re sick and most especially if you have symptoms of COVID-19, stay home.
Please bring Clorox wipes with you to Mass and wipe down the area in which you sat during Mass; we have very few
Masks are to be worn throughout Mass by anyone over 2 years old.
Communion will only be distributed on the hand. If this presents a serious obstacle for you, please inquire with a priest.
If you would like, please bring your own personal worship aid; we're aiming to avoid different people using the same missalettes.
There will be no hand-shaking at the sign of peace and the collection baskets will be placed at the doors in which you can place your donation as you leave.
The protocols are not set in stone; they will shift as diocesan guidance adjusts to changing circumstances and updated information. If you have any concerns or questions, don't hesitate to reach out. Really.
(A paraphrase from another priest as we enter into this period of slowly opening up)
Please maintain a spirit of patience and charity. Some might not agree with these directives, but right now they’re the best we have. Recall that the bishop ultimately needs to answer for these directives, and he's unavoidably trying to make one size fit all. We all need to be patient, with ourselves, the Church and one another. And we need a spirit of charity. All of these directives come from a place of not wanting anyone, including your neighbor, your priest, or you to be infected or sick. They’re not perfect, for sure. Let’s all continue to pray for an end to this pandemic so that we can move forward with our lives in joy. Looking forward to seeing you next week!
Well, I don't know how much more reading you want to do with this email, if you've made it this far! So just a short reflection on a powerful line in today's Gospel. Jesus, addressing his prayer to the heavenly father, prays, I pray not only for these [Apostles], but also for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me. In the prayer related in this passage, Jesus prays for those who will believe in him through the teaching and preaching of the Apostles. Ultimately, that's us! Everyone who has believed, since the earliest days of Christianity, has believed through their word. Jesus is praying for the entire Church, all the believers throughout history. He is praying for you and me. There, at the Last Supper, he had you and me in mind, lifting us up to his heavenly Father in prayer.
As we pick up our cross to follow him, let us rely on the strength of the prayers that the crucified one offered for all of us.