Weekly Letter from the Pastor

Dear Fellow Parishioners of St. Benedict:

The season of Autumn is fast upon us – with the equinox occurring this coming Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. Unbelievable as it might seem the Summer has passed us by. Certainly the chill that has been in the air over these past nights is our reminder of the changing of the seasons. While throughout the Summer many of us began to feel safe and comfortable about going out and getting around, the same may not be true as the cold and flu season looms ahead of us. While some of the new protocols in life might seem strange, we all understand how necessary they are. Let us continue to exercise prudence to insure our health and safety and certainly for those whom we love.

In general things have been going well in the school. A glitch here and there is due to everyone needing to learn new routines. I was speaking with one of my former colleagues at CBA who said that after almost thirty years of teaching he now feels like it’s his first year all over again, as he adapts to new protocols and teaching styles. This is, no doubt, true of all teachers and certainly the students as well. Yet, they all seem happy and ready to go.

Tonight, September 20th is the drawing of the annual 50/50 raffle. The proceeds from this raffle will assist us with the expenses incurred due to needing new protocols for the church and the school.

As you may have heard the bishop has eased some of the restrictions on the church and our practices, but none of that will have a great impact on us here yet. We have been able to increase our Mass capacity to 160 from the previous 138. It is good to see more and more people attending Mass each weekend.

We are planning some fall activities in faith formation, hoping to be able to engage as many as we can in person but, primarily through a live-streaming of the programs. This time at home has offered a good opportunity for growth in faith, but it has also been a time for people to grow lax in faith.

Please remember that Confession is offered on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings after the 9:00 a.m. Mass. The “confessional” is a screen located by the entrance to the Adoration Chapel. Speaking of the Adoration Chapel, we are still not comfortable opening that for the general public as it is so small as to make social distancing a challenge. We will look at this again in a few weeks.

In the meantime, we continue to do the ordinary parish activities. We are celebrating baptisms every weekend on both Saturday and Sunday, as well as anytime during the week when someone is interested.

We have been celebrating weddings, funerals, and Memorial Masses for those who passed away during the lockdown period. Anyone who would like to schedule a Memorial Mass should please call the parish office to make arrangements. We are trying to keep things as “normal” as possible.

The Hall of Saints – door #6 at the back of the church – remains open for private prayer on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Let us continue to pray for each other,
Fr. Garry