New Beginnings for Public Mass

by Father Joe

New Beginnings for Public Mass!

It was a great surprise on Monday to hear that places of worship were included in Phase 1 of our Commonwealth’s gradual return to public life, and then to hear the archdiocese concur that we can start working toward the return of limited numbers of Catholics to public Masses! Please know: there will NOT be a full schedule of Masses, we will still offer online Masses every day, and Cardinal Seán still releases all Catholics from the Sunday Mass obligation because many people will still not be able to safely attend Mass yet. Cardinal Seán strongly encourages people in vulnerable populations, especially the elderly and those with complicating physical conditions, to continue to watch Mass from their homes on the internet from our collaborative parishes, or on CatholicTV. For a time it will remain the norm for many Catholics not to be physically present at Mass, but it is a huge step forward that we can begin the process of allowing parishioners gradually to return to public Masses and receiving the Eucharist in Communion!

This step will also be a new beginning in another way. Like all the other new beginnings we have recently experienced, we will not be going back to the way things were in January and February (who wants to go back to winter when it’s springtime?!) We will begin the return to public Mass with many new practices – some of which you are already familiar with from grocery shopping, etc. You will only be able to enter through designated doors, and everyone attending must wear a face covering or mask and respect social distancing. To provide distancing, we already blocked off two out of every three pews and put six-foot markings in pews and where the Communion lines will be. Because these provisions greatly reduce our capacity, at first we will need to sign-up for the Mass we wish to attend. You will need to check our website at www.pwc.church, our Facebook pages, or call the parish offices to find Mass schedules and to register before you attend. Volunteers will greet you at the doors and usher everyone to available seating (of course families/households may sit together). There will be no processions, no hymnals and no congregational singing for a time – only the music ministers will sing (we can hum along if we want!) For Communion, ushers will direct each pew up the side aisle (to return by the center aisle), and ushers will dismiss people row-by-row at the end. Each parish will need volunteers to help sanitize the church after each Mass. Anyone who is not in a vulnerable population and wants to attend Mass, please call your parish office to volunteer to be on a team that makes this possible!

It is taking time to make these plans and train volunteers, and we know this will take some getting used to for all of us (priests included), but we also know we need to earn your trust that we are doing everything we can to make our churches as safe and welcoming as possible. To assist with these efforts, I immediately formed a “Return to Public Mass” ad hoc committee comprised of parishioners with expertise in medical care, mental health, business, and en-vironmental protection, as well as liturgy and pastoral ministry. Our Pastoral Team (clergy & staff) and other volunteers need advice and guidance from them as well as our Sunday Experience Team to be able to do this well. I am personally grateful to all of these people for the hard work we are doing together as members of the Body of Christ!

We are getting used to some of the other new experiences in our lives, and we will get used to the way these new beginnings in our churches need to take place for the time being. In time, as scientific and medical advances are made in studying this pandemic, we will be able to lift many of these restrictions. But for now, our collaborative parishes are committed to ministering to those who are not yet able to come to church as well as those who do. In the weeks to come, we will evaluate our Mass procedures and seek your feedback. We also hope to find a safe way to offer Communion to those who are not able to be present at Mass. Please continue to check www.pwc.church and the bulletin regularly for updates on ways to stay connected with our parish communities, our family of faith on this journey of new beginnings!