Adjustment to Church Seating
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October 14, 2021October 14, 2021
Dear Parishioners,
I hope all of you have had a very joyful Thanksgiving with family and friends and that God continues to bless you with His abundant grace.
I am writing you today to announce a change in our seating plan for Sunday worship. We will be increasing the number of people allowed in the church, and with the new configuration we will be able to accommodate 50 more people at each of our Sunday masses. This new seating plan will take effect on the weekend of October 23/24. We will still be practising social distancing and masks will continue to be mandatory at all services.
With this increase in seating I hope that more people will be able to return to Sunday Eucharist. The dispensation from the obligation to attend mass on Sunday granted by the Cardinal is still in effect, but some people may not understand how this dispensation works. It is meant for all those who are suffering from the effects of Covid, or are experiencing symptoms which may be Covid related, or must self isolate because they have been exposed to someone who has tested positive for the virus. It also covers those who have medical conditions which put them at greater risk than the general population, the elderly who may be fearful of catching the virus, and of course it would cover all of us if there was another lockdown.
But it is not to be used as an excuse not to go to mass. If you are able, vaccinated or not, and you do not have any medical condition that puts you at risk, or an extreme fear or phobia of the Covid virus and its variants, you are obligated to at least try and get to mass. Yes, numbers are restricted. It can be difficult to get a ticket, but I hope that you will try to be with us as we gather around the table of the Lord. We can now accommodate 150 people at mass. Our parish hall can seat up to 40 more people who could not get reservations. The mass is live streamed to the hall and everyone is invited into the church at communion time to receive the Eucharist.
You can book tickets through Eventbrite on our parish website. If you do not have access to a computer, you can call Rocelyn at the parish office. Tickets go on-line every Monday at noon.
The second thing I want to communicate to you today concerns our finances. With the reduced numbers allowed at mass our weekly collection for the past 20 months has been less then half of what we received prior to Covid. With prices increasing and our suppliers having difficulty attaining stock, we must pay a premium for those simple items which are necessary for our worship, such as sacramental wine, hosts, and candles for the altar. We have staff salaries as well as the priest’s salaries and living expenses to pay. We have cut back everywhere we can and have deferred all maintenance to those things which are absolutely essential. Still we have accrued a debt of over $60,000.00. The Diocese will carry this for us until December and then will start charging interest.
We have had a few parishioners who have very generously given extra donations towards this debt, and if you are able to do so it would be greatly appreciated. But the best way to help is to consider donating every week by using our parish donation envelopes, signing up for automatic withdrawal, or donating through the parish website. If you have not picked up donation envelopes, they are available in the Church. If you can’t come to Sunday mass, you can drop your donation envelope in the mailbox outside the front doors. A consistent donation, no matter how small, will help us to address the debt.
I will be meeting with the Parish Financial Committee and ask their advice on creating a separate parish campaign to help address our financial issues and a schedule for the deferred maintenance.
I know this pandemic has been going on far longer than any of us thought, and it will be some time before we will be able to eradicate the effect it has had on us mentally, spiritually, physically and financially. But with prayer and trust in God who continues to heal and reconcile all of creation we will come through this time of trial stronger and more compassionate.
Thank you for your prayers and support, and God bless you all.
Yours in Christ,
Msgr. Michael Busch.
