Here is a document we just received from the Diocese which comes from all the Bishops of Ohio concerning returning to Mass. Basically it states that the Bishops are extending the temporary suspension of all publicly celebrated Masses until May 29th, with the hope of publicly celebrating Mass together on the feast of Pentecost which is the weekend of May 30th & 31st. Please read the letter in its entirety & let me know if you have any questions.
Pastor's Blog for April 26, 2020
Today I had 3 Zoom meetings (video conferencing with several people at once)...first with our Principal & School teachers (they’ve been having Zoom meetings with their students), then with some rectory staff people, then with some priests from the Diocese. It’s helpful to be able to see familiar faces besides hearing their voices. It was just announced that school will be closed for the rest of the year, which is not a big surprise. But again we have to wait for more news on religious services, etc.
We are taking advantage of this time to do more work in and outside of the church in preparation for when you return. First, we have much better lighting in the church itself. We added some ceiling lights on the left and right side aisles, and then replaced all the ceiling bulbs with LED lights that are a bit brighter than the ones we had before, and repaired the ones that were not working at all. All of the lights now have a nice warm glow to them which really makes a difference in the sanctuary or altar area as there was a mix of cool (white tint) and warm (yellow tint) lights there before. Hopefully it will help ease the strain of our aging eyes.
We are also taking advantage of the emptiness of the church to strip and wax the terrazzo floor which was in very bad need of being cleaned. It’s hard to do more than simply sweep and mop the floor when people are in there through- out the week so this gave us the chance to really clean it up and the difference is very noticeable. We also painted the very dated (from the 70’s) wooded walls in the vestibule.
Finally, since we’re pretty much caught up with repairs to the buildings, we are finally able to turn some attention to the landscaping (or lack thereof) outside on our grounds. It’s a big project given the size of our property but it will be nice to have some fresh scenery. We needed to remove some dead and/or diseased trees but are also adding some to replace those. The fence alongside the property line to the right when you drive in is being repaired as well. This ongoing project will give a welcoming look to you and those who visit us.
My hair was getting so long that I was beginning to look like cousin It from the Adam’s family. But my barbershop is closed, so I watched a couple of YouTube videos on how to cut your own hair. I knew it would be very risky, but I also knew that few people would see me for a few weeks anyway (except in my YouTube Mass videos but I could always get away with wearing a biretta...do you know what that is?). To be honest, I’ve had worse haircuts from actual barbers! So pretty proud of myself that it doesn’t look like a blind- folded person cut my hair. And now I’ll save a couple hundred bucks every year doing it myself. So there’s another small blessing hidden in these times.
You can now quickly fill out a form on our website requesting me to light a vigil candle at one of our shrines for your intention. How important it is for us to keep prayer foremost in our minds as we continue on through this time.
New: Light a Vigil Candle Online
As I walk in the church, the one think that keeps striking me is how none of our vigil candles are lit by the shrines of the Sacred Heart and St. Ann (with Mary). So I thought it would be convenient for you to have us light a candle for you.
So you can click the Menu at the top of this website called “Online Giving” and choose “Light Vigil Candle.” This will allow you to fill out a brief form, asking for your name & email address, and the intention that you would like to offer (it’s fine to just say “for a special intention”). After you click the Submit button, you will have the option of making a $3.00 donation using a credit card, or you can choose to just make the donation the next time you are in church or stop in the rectory office. The donation is optional but allows us to cover the cost of the candle.
I will be happy to light the candle for you at the shrine of your choice and pray for your intention.
Please note that since there is only one candle at the shrines of St. Leo the Great and St. Vincent de Paul, you will be notified when the candle there has been lit for you.
Pastor's Blog for April 19, 2020
On this second Sunday after Easter, we are on the last day of what the Church calls the “Octave” of Easter, meaning the eight days when we celebrate Easter each day as if it were Easter Day itself. This is because we cannot limit our rejoicing to just one day...it must be spread out, as it were, over a period of eight days in order for us to fully reflect on what it means that Christ has been raised from the dead. Easter is not just about what happened to Jesus but about what happens to all of us now that he has shown us in a way no one else could, the love and mercy of our heavenly Father. It means that we have hope. We have a future to look forward to. We have the promise that we will not die in our sins. For “if we believe that Jesus was raised from the dead, so too will God raise us from death by the same Spirit that raised up Jesus.” This is why we sing Alleluia during this time.
While I’m glad that we were able to post a YouTube video of the Mass on Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday & Easter Sunday, and of the Service on Good Friday, I apologize that we weren’t able to see you on the days of Holy Week following Palm Sunday as planned. While the passing out of palms went well, and so many of you showed up for that, things didn’t work out as well on Good Friday. I put the cross with red draping on it outside a little before noon, but it was so windy that the cross kept falling over even though I leaned it up against the stained glass window of the church. It was also very cold so I thought instead of handing out the cross pins as we hoped, I put them in a basket & placed that on a table, only to have the wind knock it down & cause all the pins to go flying out on the parking lot! I thought it might cause someone to get a flat tire so I went scurrying about trying to pick them all up before they flew too far away. You would have probably laughed at the sight, but I can assure you I wasn’t laughing when it happened! The weather didn’t look good for the following two days either so I thought I better cancel the food blessing & book give-away on Easter before it was too late. So I’m sorry if anyone came driving by before you read about the cancellation on our website, but know that you still get God’s blessings for your effort. I will continue to post videos on our website of the Mass during this time of lockdown as many of you seem to find that worthwhile. I just hope I can get better used to preaching to a camera instead of to human beings. It takes a lot of imagination to believe that I’m not just talking to an inanimate object. If you can think of any other ways that we can reach out to you during this time, please let me know. I’m glad that we at least have the technology of the internet to communicate with you through our website.
As I continue to celebrate a private Mass every day, please know you are foremost in my prayers during that time. I look forward to the day when we can celebrate our faith together again. Until then, let us pray for one another.
Why is St. Rocco the Saint We Should Being Calling On Now? →
St. Rocco is one of the saints that the Church calls on at this time of the Coronavirus because of his encounter with the plaque. Find out why we ask for his intercession at this time (and why he is often pictured with a dog holding bread in his mouth).
Easter Sunday Mass →
This is what I referred to in my Easter Mass homily. Read it with joy!
From an ancient homily for Holy Saturday
The Lord's descent into the underworld
Something strange is happening – there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh and hell trembles with fear.
He has gone to search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep. Greatly desiring to visit those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, he has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve, he who is both God and the son of Eve. The Lord approached them bearing the cross, the weapon that had won him the victory. At the sight of him Adam, the first man he had created, struck his breast in terror and cried out to everyone: “My Lord be with you all.” Christ answered him: “And with your spirit.” He took him by the hand and raised him up, saying: “Awake, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”
I am your God, who for your sake have become your son. Out of love for you and for your descendants I now by my own authority command all who are held in bondage to come forth, all who are in darkness to be enlightened, all who are sleeping to arise. I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be held a prisoner in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, work of my hands, you who were created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in me and I am in you; together we form only one person and we cannot be separated. For your sake I, your God, became your son; I, the Lord, took the form of a slave; I, whose home is above the heavens, descended to the earth and beneath the earth. For your sake, for the sake of man, I became like a man without help, free among the dead. For the sake of you, who left a garden, I was betrayed to the Jews in a garden, and I was crucified in a garden.
See on my face the spittle I received in order to restore to you the life I once breathed into you. See there the marks of the blows I received in order to refashion your warped nature in my image. On my back see the marks of the scourging I endured to remove the burden of sin that weighs upon your back. See my hands, nailed firmly to a tree, for you who once wickedly stretched out your hand to a tree.
I slept on the cross and a sword pierced my side for you who slept in paradise and brought forth Eve from your side. My side has healed the pain in yours. My sleep will rouse you from your sleep in hell. The sword that pierced me has sheathed the sword that was turned against you.
Rise, let us leave this place. The enemy led you out of the earthly paradise. I will not restore you to that paradise, but I will enthrone you in heaven. I forbade you the tree that was only a symbol of life, but see, I who am life itself am now one with you. I appointed cherubim to guard you as slaves are guarded, but now I make them worship you as God. The throne formed by cherubim awaits you, its bearers swift and eager. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal dwelling places are prepared, the treasure houses of all good things lie open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you from all eternity.
Pastor's Blog for April 12, 2020
Happy Easter everyone! A couple of months ago, who would have guessed that we would not be gathering in church for this great feast of Easter, the most important feast of the Church? And who would have believed that our Easter dinners at home would be likely limited to just our immediate family members? But such is the uncertainty of life. Though the world and of course the Church along with it has experienced plagues and world-wide catastrophes in history, what we experience together in 2020 (and beyond?) is certainly unique. I don’t know that the Church has ever cancelled the public celebration of Mass or withdrawn its sacramental life in its 2,000 year history. Indeed we will remember and tell of these peculiar times to those who follow after us and pray that the world will never have to experience such a pandemic again, or at the very least, will be better prepared for it should it ever happen again.
But my purpose here is not just to muse on these past days and weeks but to remind you that in the midst of the world’s changes, what will never change will be the continuous presence of the Risen Lord and the proclamation of his Gospel through the Church. This we have as a promise from Christ, that “I will remain with you until the end of time.” So despite all the negative and frightening news we have been hearing, reading or watching, we still can rejoice on this Easter Day that the Lord has remained with us, and has once again taught us that despite the evil that exists in the world (and even in us), he can pull life out of every harmful thing that we face, just as God brought forth (eternal) life from the death of His Son. How we need this Good News now more than ever. It is what sustains us in hope.
What a joy it was for me to see familiar faces (even ones that were partially covered by masks) as you drove by to receive palms or to venerate the cross or to have your Easter baskets blessed or wished us a Happy Easter as we handed you a book. It seemed like we had not seen you for months but it was so comforting to see how you continue to hold on to your faith and to find ways to express it, even during a quarantine when so much of the world (including our churches) had to shut down. It’s a sure sign to me of the resurrection, the new life that has arisen in you despite the crosses you have had to bear.
I am encouraged by the fact that so many of you were able to participate in the Mass as we posted it online, and am grateful that you continued to support the parish financially by mailing it or dropping off your collection envelopes. I can pledge to you that we will continue to do whatever we can to help you remain connected to us in the weeks or months ahead and continue to encourage you to visit our website or to feel free to call if technology is not at your disposal. Please continue to check in on your neighbors and fellow parishioners by calling them, especially if they are elderly, live alone, or do not have internet technology available to them. We must let them know that we are here to support them, pray for them and know that they are not forgotten.
Good Friday Solemn Celebration of the Lord's Passion →
Change of Plans
Due to the cold and windy weather, we need to cancel our plans for Holy Saturday & Easter Sunday. Plans for the food blessing and the passing out of holy water on Holy Saturday, and for giving books on Easter Sunday are cancelled as well.
We apologize for the change but Mother Nature is not cooperating with us this year.
We will still post videos of our Good Friday Service and Easter Sunday Masses, but the Mass for Holy Saturday has been cancelled.
Thank you for your understanding.