Memo from Msgr. Raun- Tuesday February 16th, 2021
My dear family,
Looking out the window, I don't know if I should wish you Happy Marti Gras or Merry Christmas! But no matter what, it is the day before the Holy Fast of Lent, and we want to get ready for this special season of grace.
ASH WEDNESDAY - Feb. 17th
FASTING AND ABSTINENCE
Ash Wednesday is a day of fasting (only one meal: binding on everyone under pain of sin ages 18-59) and of abstinence from eating meat (the flesh of any warm-blooded animal, binding under pain of sin for all those who have reached the age of reason). Reasons of health automatically excuses any person from these rules.
DISTRIBUTION OF ASHES
On Ash Wednesday we will have services every hour on the hour from 7 am to 7 pm for the giving of ashes. The 9 am and 6 pm will be Holy Mass, all the other services will be short prayer services.
Ashes will be distributed outside the doors of the church at all services, after the people inside have received their ashes. The ashes will be given in a Covid-safe way (we have ordered 3,000 Q-Tips for this purpose!)
Because of all the Ash Wednesday services, THERE WILL BE NO ADORATION NOR CONFESSIONS on Ash Wednesday.
THIS FRIDAY, AND EVERY FRIDAY OF LENT
ABSTINENCE: Every Friday during Lent is a day of abstinence from eating meat.
STATIONS OF THE CROSS AND BENEDICTION will be every Friday of Lent at 3 pm and 7 pm. They will also be lived-streamed on our website each Friday.
EXTRA LENTEN CONFESSIONS
In addition to the usual times, there will be a priest in church every Friday at 7 pm to hear confessions during the Stations.
EVERY MONDAY OF LENT
LENTEN BIBLE STUDY 2021 - FORTY DAYS OF LOVE
Well, we can't have our normal "Soup and Scripture" this Lent, but that won't keep us from delving deeper into the Word of God.
Our Lenten study is called "Forty Days of Love" - that is what we want our Lent to be! We Christians must be overcoming the hate and anger that seems to be filling our strange Covid-infected world. We will learn what the Bible means by "love" (something very different from what the world means!), and see what the Bible teaches us about very practical ways to grow in the love of God and love of other human beings. You won't want to miss this!
I will be teaching it every Monday night of Lent at 7 pm.
We are going to allow forty people to attend in-person in the Hall. Of course we will have everyone socially-distanced and wearing masks. If you would like to be part of our "studio audience" just call the office and reserve a spot.
It will also be live-streamed at 7 pm - just go to the website to watch it!
For those who wish, there will be small-group discussion on Zoom after the presentation.
To join a Zoom small group after each teaching, just go to website, or paste the following link into your browser:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYpceitqTsrGNCq17YMvm2X--fR55h4YPYb
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Friends, the small groups are wonderful, and add so much to the teaching! While you can certainly just watch the teaching alone, I want to encourage those of you who have never joined a small group to try it this Lent.
WE GIVE THANKS TO GOD that the number of Covid cases has declined so dramatically. God grant that this may be the beginning of the end! Sandoval County has moved into the "yellow" category, which means that we can now have 333 people at any given service in church ( that is 1/3 of our seating capacity.)
While I realize each person must determine when it is safe for them to return to Mass, I want to remind everyone that we take extra-ordinary precautions to have a Covid-safe environment in church. Also, there is always the option of listening to the Mass on your car radio (106.5 FM) and receiving Holy Communion outside after Mass. Now, especially during Lent, we do not want to stay long-separated from Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament if at all possible.
FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH, your pastor got his first COVID vaccination yesterday. Again, this is a decision for each person to make. But the committee of our American bishops in charge of ethical affairs - bishops I very much respect and of perfect orthodoxy - have said that there is no moral problem in receiving the vaccination. Even the Holy Father in Rome has been vaccinated. Please look out for false information circulating on the Internet - you cannot believe everything you read on the World Wide Web!
PLEASE SHARE ALL THIS INFORMATION WITH THOSE WHO DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET!
QUOTES FROM THE SAINTS to give you peace, hope, and strength...
“The secret to happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for what He is sending us every day in His goodness.”
– St. Gianna Molla
I send you my fatherly blessing, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen !
Msgr. Doug Raun
Looking out the window, I don't know if I should wish you Happy Marti Gras or Merry Christmas! But no matter what, it is the day before the Holy Fast of Lent, and we want to get ready for this special season of grace.
ASH WEDNESDAY - Feb. 17th
FASTING AND ABSTINENCE
Ash Wednesday is a day of fasting (only one meal: binding on everyone under pain of sin ages 18-59) and of abstinence from eating meat (the flesh of any warm-blooded animal, binding under pain of sin for all those who have reached the age of reason). Reasons of health automatically excuses any person from these rules.
DISTRIBUTION OF ASHES
On Ash Wednesday we will have services every hour on the hour from 7 am to 7 pm for the giving of ashes. The 9 am and 6 pm will be Holy Mass, all the other services will be short prayer services.
Ashes will be distributed outside the doors of the church at all services, after the people inside have received their ashes. The ashes will be given in a Covid-safe way (we have ordered 3,000 Q-Tips for this purpose!)
Because of all the Ash Wednesday services, THERE WILL BE NO ADORATION NOR CONFESSIONS on Ash Wednesday.
THIS FRIDAY, AND EVERY FRIDAY OF LENT
ABSTINENCE: Every Friday during Lent is a day of abstinence from eating meat.
STATIONS OF THE CROSS AND BENEDICTION will be every Friday of Lent at 3 pm and 7 pm. They will also be lived-streamed on our website each Friday.
EXTRA LENTEN CONFESSIONS
In addition to the usual times, there will be a priest in church every Friday at 7 pm to hear confessions during the Stations.
EVERY MONDAY OF LENT
LENTEN BIBLE STUDY 2021 - FORTY DAYS OF LOVE
Well, we can't have our normal "Soup and Scripture" this Lent, but that won't keep us from delving deeper into the Word of God.
Our Lenten study is called "Forty Days of Love" - that is what we want our Lent to be! We Christians must be overcoming the hate and anger that seems to be filling our strange Covid-infected world. We will learn what the Bible means by "love" (something very different from what the world means!), and see what the Bible teaches us about very practical ways to grow in the love of God and love of other human beings. You won't want to miss this!
I will be teaching it every Monday night of Lent at 7 pm.
We are going to allow forty people to attend in-person in the Hall. Of course we will have everyone socially-distanced and wearing masks. If you would like to be part of our "studio audience" just call the office and reserve a spot.
It will also be live-streamed at 7 pm - just go to the website to watch it!
For those who wish, there will be small-group discussion on Zoom after the presentation.
To join a Zoom small group after each teaching, just go to website, or paste the following link into your browser:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYpceitqTsrGNCq17YMvm2X--fR55h4YPYb
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Friends, the small groups are wonderful, and add so much to the teaching! While you can certainly just watch the teaching alone, I want to encourage those of you who have never joined a small group to try it this Lent.
WE GIVE THANKS TO GOD that the number of Covid cases has declined so dramatically. God grant that this may be the beginning of the end! Sandoval County has moved into the "yellow" category, which means that we can now have 333 people at any given service in church ( that is 1/3 of our seating capacity.)
While I realize each person must determine when it is safe for them to return to Mass, I want to remind everyone that we take extra-ordinary precautions to have a Covid-safe environment in church. Also, there is always the option of listening to the Mass on your car radio (106.5 FM) and receiving Holy Communion outside after Mass. Now, especially during Lent, we do not want to stay long-separated from Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament if at all possible.
FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH, your pastor got his first COVID vaccination yesterday. Again, this is a decision for each person to make. But the committee of our American bishops in charge of ethical affairs - bishops I very much respect and of perfect orthodoxy - have said that there is no moral problem in receiving the vaccination. Even the Holy Father in Rome has been vaccinated. Please look out for false information circulating on the Internet - you cannot believe everything you read on the World Wide Web!
PLEASE SHARE ALL THIS INFORMATION WITH THOSE WHO DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET!
QUOTES FROM THE SAINTS to give you peace, hope, and strength...
“The secret to happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for what He is sending us every day in His goodness.”
– St. Gianna Molla
I send you my fatherly blessing, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen !
Msgr. Doug Raun
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