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May 27, 2020
Dear Parishioners,
On May 21, Bishop Luis Rafael issued new instructions for the Diocese of Raleigh concerning indoor and outdoor worship. The Bishop is allowing for churches to begin to have Mass indoors again at 50% capacity of the church. We had anticipated this number and we have been planning as such. I am happy to announce that we will soon resume weekday and weekend Masses for you, our people. Here is our plan:
- We will have the planned outdoor Mass next Sunday on Pentecost at 9:15AM in English and 1:30PM in Spanish. The Mass will take place in the area behind the school gym. You may begin to arrive at 8:30AM. Police and safety personnel will be on hand to assist you.
- On Monday, June 1, we will resume weekday Mass. Until further notice, our weekday Masses will be in the church to allow for social distancing.
- On June 6-7, we will resume our regular weekend Mass schedule. We will have spaces marked in the church where you may sit. The signs on the pews will indicate where an individual or couple or family may sit. We have the capacity for 200 households, or about 400 people on average. Once numbers reach 200 households, there will be overflow seating in the Friends and Family Hall and meeting rooms. Communion will be brought to these rooms much like we do on Christmas and Easter.
As a reminder, you must always wear a mask while on campus and during Mass and unrelated persons must observe social distancing. This includes children. For the safety of all, children must stay in their seated area with parents and not roam. This will be hard, I know. Children must always wear a mask. If your child cannot tolerate a mask or stay close, please join us via live stream.
The Bishop continues to dispense Catholics from the obligation to attend Mass. Please stay home if you have been sick or are in the vulnerable population. According to guidelines from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control), people at higher risk for severe illness include immunocompromised people (those whose immune systems may not function properly due to cancer treatment, other illnesses or medications), older adults, and those with underlying chronic illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, lung disease or liver disease. If you do not feel safe coming to Mass, with this number of people in the building, consider coming to weekday Mass or consider tuning to the livestream, which we will continue to have on Wednesday at 12:15PM and Sunday at 9:15AM in English and on Thursday at 6:30PM and 1:30PM in Spanish. You can also contact Fr. Chris or myself and we will be happy to speak to you about ways to receive the sacraments privately. The guidelines for Mass can be found here. As you make your decision please consider not just your risk of exposure to the virus but also who you could expose on returning home by attending mass even with wearing a mask and social distancing. Because of asymptomatic transmission you could carry the virus to an older family member, a medically at-risk family member, a new baby or essential worker.
I am confident in the work of our Return to Jerusalem Taskforce (click to see taskforce member bios) and all the measures that they have in place to allow us to have a prayerful, unique, and safe celebration of Mass.
Our return to Mass is good news for us. This is what we have been waiting for and we will be so happy to see you all again.
Due to the personnel required to assist those coming for Reconciliation, we will only celebrate the sacrament on Saturday beginning at 3:45PM. Confessions will not take place on Wednesday or Sunday. Beginning on June 6, Reconciliation will take place in Friends and Family Hall. Know that you are always welcome to call Fr. Chris or myself for an appointment for confession.
Finally. on Monday, June 1, our parish office will reopen to the public with modified hours and operations. The reception desk will be staffed from 10:00AM - 12:00PM each weekday. You are free to come to the office during those times for parish business, to request Mass cards etc. Our staff will be working in various shifts to ensure we do not have too many people in the office at once. To see a staff member, please contact that person to make an appointment.
In His Love,
Very Rev. Scott E. McCue, V.F. Pastor