The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying,
“How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
-John 6:52

June  14, 2020

 

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The Eucharist is a hard teaching. If people only understood the Eucharist, our need for Evangelization would be forever satisfied. This sacrament at the core of our faith and mission as a Church is amazing. In God’s great love, he sent the Lord Jesus, who offered his life in its fullness by his passion, death, and resurrection. The Eucharist continues to make present to us this offering at one time and in one place, forever accessible to us.

How do we deepen our love for Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament? 

First, ask the Holy Spirit. A simple yet profound prayer begins with asking for what we want. Ask for an increase in your desire. Ask for the increase in your love. Ask for the increase in your commitment to living out the mystery of the Eucharist in your life.

Second, spend time with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, striving to be fully present. We are often easily distracted. Physically gathering in the Church can be helpful for us to appreciate the time of prayer. While this is a limited opportunity at this time, on Wednesdays from 2pm to 7pm and at our Masses, recognize that your longing is a prayer heard by God. And in the absence of that opportunity to gather in the Church, strive to create a time and space in your life for adoration and praise of Jesus. You may live stream Eucharistic Adoration and encounter the Lord as He comes to you and is made present by the Holy Spirit who dwells with you.

Lastly, I encourage you to pray for the increase in love and fervor for the Blessed Sacrament in our brothers and sisters who are in our parish, in our community, and in our world. While many turned away from Jesus as he taught in John Chapter 6, let us pray that more people may embrace this vital teaching and allow Christ to consume us, to form us truly as the Body of Christ. Let us imitate Christ, joining our sacrifices to the sacrifice of the Eucharist, offering our lives for the sake of others.

With great joy, we received the news of Pope Francis appointing Bishop-elect Bruce Lewandowski as Auxiliary Bishop of Baltimore. Joining Bishop Denis Madden and Bishop Adam Parker, Bishop-elect Lewandowski will support Archbishop Lori as we seek to build the Kingdom of God here in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. As a Redemptorist priest, Bishop-elect Lewandowski shares the roots of our parish, and so I encourage you to ask the intercession of Our Lady of Perpetual Help to pray for him. Archbishop Lori will ordain him a Bishop in August, though Bishop-elect Lewandowski will continue his current responsibilities after ordination as pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus and as the Archbishop’s Delegate for Hispanic Ministries.

On the same day, Pope Francis appointed a native of Baltimore, Bishop Mitch Rozanski as the Archbishop of St. Louis. Please continue your prayers for him as he transitions into this new position.

With guidance from the Archdiocese, we are also excited to begin scheduling those who have been awaiting the Sacraments, including our First Communicants, our Confirmation Candidates, and our RCIA candidates. Stay tuned as we celebrate these special moments of grace.

 

PLEASE SIGN-UP FOR MASS THE WEEKEND OF JUNE 20/21 HERE. As a reminder, following my closing are the parish guidelines and expectations for your review.  These expectations remain the same as in weeks past. 

Next Sunday, June 21, we will join our brothers and sisters across the country to celebrate our fathers. On Fathers’ Day, we will begin a Novena of Masses for our fathers, grandfathers, godfathers, and father figures. Please use this LINK to include your special fathers in our mass intentions for nine days. To all of our fathers and father figures we extend our gratitude towards you, who reveal to us the love, mercy, and protection of our God. May the Lord bless you and strengthen you in this important ministry. May the Lord receive into heaven our fathers who have passed and gone before us.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help, pray for us.

Live Jesus in our hearts, forever.

In the Lord,
Rev. Michael S. Triplett

 

###

We trust you will adhere to these guidelines before coming to Mass on Saturday or Sunday:

▫ Check your temperature; if it is above 99.9°, remain home;

▫ If you or a family member are feeling ill, remain home; if you or a family member have been exposed to someone with Covid-19 or have been symptomatic within 14 days, you are not permitted on campus;

▫ Bring a mask or facial covering for each family member (with the exception of those children who are 2 years old or younger);

▫ Pack chairs, seat pads, or blankets that are easy for placement on the Harrison Hall parking lot;

▫ Please plan in advance your need for a restroom. If necessary, the family restroom in the lower level Parish Center will be available. We must request your personal responsibility to sanitize after each use.

Mass will be offered from the Harrison Hall concrete landing on Sunday at 9am and 11am; Mass will be in the Church on Saturday at 4:30pm.  You will be invited to sit, with proper social distancing, on the asphalt lot before the Harrison Hall entrance or inside the Church respectively. As you arrive on campus you will be greeted with parking and seating directions. Those with physical limitations will be allowed “curbside drop off.” You should expect a one-way traffic direction from the main entrance, around the front to the school, past the church, and as necessary behind the church towards the parish center. There will be no thru traffic between the playground and Harrison Hall.

For Saturday Mass at 4:30pm in the Church, please sit with your household family, in the pew our staff has reserved for you. Note 2 out of every 3 pews are roped off with red cord. With the physical distancing expectation of sitting at 6-8 feet from others, our Saturday Mass is more limited in numbers.

As you park, please follow these safety guidelines:

▫ With the exception of Holy Communion, your mouth and nose must be covered from the time you leave your car until the time you return to your car to depart campus.

▫ Please follow directions on where to be seated, maintaining the necessary distance. As we practice “physical distancing” of 6-8 feet between persons not of the same household, we also need to refrain from socializing with each other.

▫ If a restroom is required, we ask you to please safely line up outside the lower level Parish Center or in the Narthex where you will be guided to the restroom as available. The family restrooms in both respective spaces will be available, and requires you to sanitize after each use.

▫ For our Outdoor Masses, during the Eucharistic Prayer, where it is customary to kneel, you are welcome to remain standing.

▫ For Holy Communion, you will be guided to one of our communion stations.  A Communion Minister will distribute the Blessed Sacrament to you while wearing a face covering. When it is your turn, remove your mask, receive Communion, replace your mask and continue following the directional flow back to your seat. If a Communion Minister comes into contact with your hands, they will place the Blessed Sacrament on the table, sanitize their hands, and then resume distribution. It is highly encouraged for you to receive Communion in the hand as an act of charity. If you must insist on receiving on the tongue, only the priest will distribute in this manner (it is not fair to ask Communion Ministers at large to take that risk). You will either need to be seated in the priest section or wait until after Mass as movement during Mass will not be possible. Note the priest will sanitize before and after distributing to each person on the tongue. We appreciate your patience as communion flow may take a bit more time. The good news: we will keep the homily short!

▫ After the Blessing and Dismissal, you will be dismissed by section to limit congregating and violating social distance safety. Please note, for the safety and flow of the process, all parishioners must wait until the end of Mass before departing.

▫ Knowing there are many factors we cannot control, we yield to the fact that weather may cause us to alter or cancel Mass.

▫ The Mass will be spoken. There will be no music nor singing, no worship aids, missalettes or bulletins, and no sign of peace exchanged. This is all with the desire to not spread Covid-19 and to keep all parishioners and clergy safe and healthy.

▫ An offertory drop box will be available, yet electronic giving is safest for us (olphparish.org/giving).