God knows that taking care of yourself — body, mind, and soul — has never been more essential!
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has assembled working guidelines encompassing both medical expertise and liturgical norms for each bishop to consider as he issues directives to his pastors and their flocks during this time of pandemic. I hope you will join me in thanking Mike Iarocci, Chair of the Building & Grounds Committee, as well as Paula King, Annie Anderson, and Fred Mehrmann, members of the Safe Environment Committee, who have assumed leadership roles in the parish’s fight against COVID-19 as it relates to St. Joseph’s property. Thanks, too, to our wonderful ushers and other volunteers who have joined the effort to engage precautionary measures that protect the faithful while in the church building.
The air filtration systems and ducts are monitored and cleaned periodically to ensure that the church’s air quality is as pure as possible. Our ushers and volunteers are engaged actively in observing sanitization protocols, by ensuring that mask-wearing requirements are enforced, by disinfecting the pews and all high-touch surfaces after each Mass, by ensuring that the pump bottles of hand sanitizer are filled and placed strategically for easy access by our worshippers, and by following contact-tracing measures (i.e., taking temperatures and completing screening questionnaires) prior to each Mass of any ministers (myself included) who will come into contact with other members of the community during our liturgies.
In short, we love you and we care about you! We want you to be healthy — body, mind, and soul. Stay healthy, and God bless you!
Fr. John Mahoney
P.S. The week of November 1 is National Vocations Awareness week. Please pray for vocations to priesthood and religious life!