Weekly Update from Fr. Tom
September 17, 2020
 
Dear Friends,
 
First time Announcements:
 
What to Expect at Masses at St. Joe: Here are some tips as we open up Mass at St. Joe beginning this weekend.
  • Only two doors will be open for entering the building. The center door and the ramp door. The third door will be an exit only door.
  • The doors will not be propped open, but hand sanitizer is available when you enter church.
  • You will give your name to our host/hostess who will tell you where you are sitting.
  • If you do not have a reservation, we will seat you if seating is available.
  • If you do not have a reservation, we will need your name and phone number. This is so we can contact you if someone who is at that Mass is later diagnosed with the Covid-19 virus.
  • Masks are required to enter the Church.
  • Please keep social distancing (6 feet) between you and the person entering before you.
  • There is a screen that will project some prayers and the lyrics for the music at the Mass.
  • For the time being, Holy Communion will be at the end of Mass. The communion minister will stand at the back of church in the side aisles for distribution of Holy Communion. After you receive communion you will exit the church.
  • For the first couple of weeks, I would suggest you leave plenty of time to go to and into Church.
  • I will proclaim the Gospel from the altar and preach from in front of the altar.
  • On the altar, the hosts that will be consecrated at the Mass will be placed on the corners of the altar. This is done so that the only host I am breathing on is the one that I consume.
 
A word about masks:
As you might imagine, the one issue that seems to get more people upset on both sides of the issue is the wearing of masks. Our Governor has issued a mask mandate for the state of Indiana that is still in effect. Masks must be worn in buildings whenever social distancing is not possible.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Robert Redfield said Wednesday, September, 16, 2020 that wearing a mask probably offers better protection against COVID-19 than will a vaccine.  I once again ask all parishioners to consider wearing the mask throughout the Mass as an act of charity to other parishioners who are concerned. Beginning the weekend of October 3rd and 4th we will be requiring that masks be worn throughout the Mass at the 5:00 p.m. Saturday evening Mass at St. Paul and the 9:30 a.m. Mass at St. Joe. There are several reasons that I am taking this step. 1) Dr. Redfield’s remarks emphasize the importance of wearing a mask to prevent the spread of the virus. 2) I have had people express concern with the fact that I was allowing masks to be optional once inside Church. They were not criticizing me; they were simply worried about coming back to Church and contracting the virus because they came back to Church. 3) I am trying to be respectful of people on both sides of the issue and this allows for that. So, this is my compromise. Once again, beginning the weekend of October 3rd and 4th we will be requiring that masks be worn throughout the Mass at the 5:00 p.m. Saturday evening Mass at St. Paul and the 9:30 a.m. Mass at St. Joe. At the other two Masses they will still be required for entry into the Church. I encourage you, as an act of charity, to wear it throughout the other Masses but will not require it.
 
Turkey Shoot Raffles: The raffle tickets for the Turkey Shoot Raffles have been mailed to each home in our parish. We have changed the date of the drawing to Sunday, October 11. This will allow us one more week of ticket sales. All that being said, we need your help! This fundraiser is the biggest of our year. We will lose a lot of the revenues from the dinner and the games. We hope to make it up with the raffle. We are asking all families to purchase or sell their packet. The packet has $100 worth of tickets. You can also exchange tickets at the parish office. I realize that this is an uncertain time for some of you. Please do not feel obligated to buy the tickets if you cannot afford to do so right now. I understand that and certainly your family comes first. This virus has not affected me in the way it has some of you and so I’m going to purchase two packets worth. Maybe some of you can join me in doing that! Whatever help you can give is greatly appreciated! Please do not mail any tickets after October 4th. We want to make sure all tickets that are purchased are in the drums so you can win!
 
Save the Date for our Parish Morning of Service: our parish Morning of Service will be held on Saturday, October 17, 2020. All of our service opportunities will be outdoors and we will practice social distancing at each location. Watch the bulletin and these updates for more details.
 
Our parish mission with Jon Leonetti was a great success. The livestream videos have garnered over 2000 views. These will be available on our parish website throughout this month.  Click here for the direct link.
 
Our High School Connect Group begins meeting September 27, 2020 at 6:15 p.m. They will meet in the gym meeting room on the St. Joe Hill Campus. These sessions will continue twice a month (usually on the 2nd and 4th Sundays).
 
Starting this Sunday:
 
Family Faith Night: In light of the need to physically distance, our religious ed program will be held family style. We will meet on the third Sunday of the month at 6:30 PM at the St. Joe Gym, starting September 20. Click here for more information and to register for our Family Faith Nights.
 
Lifeline - Phone a Friend How are you managing and coping with all that is going on in our world today? Covid, back to school, in person or virtual, unemployment, pressures on family life, protests and unrest. Coping is one option, but our faith helps us to do more than just cope. Our faith moves us from coping to hoping. If you or anyone in your family is in need of pastoral counseling to help you through this time, our Director of Discipleship, Marlene Stammerman, is available to assist you. Individual counseling and group counseling are available. For more information contact Marlene directly - 317-989-1795 or mstammerman@stjohnpaulparish.org
 
Be safe and continue to pray for the day we can put this pandemic behind us.
 
Fr. Tom