July 10, 2020
04/19/2024July 10, 2020
Dear Fellow St. Boniface Parishioners,
The green phase for Erie County continues. Unfortunately, so do the existing restrictions for celebrating Mass. As we respect these restrictions, we need to also base any decisions we make about returning to public Mass on facts, rather than hype, hysteria, or rumors. We have seen a growing number of people returning to Mass, which is great, but I suspect many people are still delaying their return to Mass because of false information about the prevalence or possibility of contracting COVID-19. As of the time I am writing this update, there have been a total of 691 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Erie County, with a total of 15 deaths attributed to the disease. This is in a population of about 200,000 people, making the chance of even contracting the disease in our area less than 1%. As I have always said, everyone must make his or her own health decisions, but please make those decisions with prudent judgment based on facts, not fear.
- As per the bishop’s instructions, we have removed all hymnals and Mass aids from the church. For those who like to follow along with the readings during Mass, as well as for assistance with the Mass parts, the phone app “Laudate” has all of that and more. For those who would like to go over the readings before Mass, usccb.org, the official website of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, has access to the daily Mass readings right on the front page. Mercita Hodapp, our organist, has also graciously begun to produce song sheets with the lyrics of the hymns for Mass. If you come to the 5:00 Saturday or 10:30 Sunday Mass, please be sure to pick up your song sheet on the way into church and discard it in the trash afterwards.
- The 7:30 AM Sunday Mass will be live-streamed and recorded each week for those who are unable or who choose not to return to Mass at this time. Please use the link below to live-stream.
https://zoom.us/j/95713413958
Meeting ID: 957 1341 3958
Password: 2VU5FN!
- With the green phase, regular office hours have resumed. The office is open 9:00 AM – 1:30 PM, Monday – Friday. Thank you for your patience these past months with our altered hours.
- We are pleased to introduce an exciting new faith formation opportunity for all our parishioners to enjoy from home on your favorite electronic device. We have subscribed to the online streaming video service Formed. You can read all about it on our bulletin, website, and our Facebook page, and you can join us for a short Zoom session on utilizing the service on Thursday, July 16, by clinking the below link:
You can join this meeting from your computer, tablet, or smartphone.
https://zoom.us/j/99954507077
You can also dial in using your phone. US: +1 312 626 6799, +1 646 876 9923, +1 301
715 8592, +1 669 900 6833, +1 253 215 8782, +1 346 248 7799, +1 408 638 0968 Meeting ID:
999-545-07077
- Plans for the summer festival have been finalized. Unfortunately, there will be no chicken dinner this year. We will still have a raffle and basket auction. Please stay tuned to these emails, the bulletin, the website, and follow us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/bonifaceparish/#) for more information.
o Tickets for the summer raffle can be picked up at the church as usual. We are also offering a completely new way to participate in the raffle for those who because of COVID-19 are concerned about coming to church to get your tickets – you can purchase them online! This can be a great way too for friends and family who have moved out of the area to still participate, so please reach out and let them know about it. More information on this exciting new option is coming soon!
o We are also looking for baskets for the basket auction. For those who are able, we ask you to please assemble a basket of a $40 value and bring it to the office as you normally would. Thank you to the members of the committee for their creativity, and thank you in advance to all of you for supporting our new vision for a summer festival like we have never done before.
Finally, since there is no dinner with our summer festival this year, there will be no “pie talk” or request for people to bake pies. Have no fear, though, as I have accepted the challenge to bake a pie in honor of the festival-that-is-not, and, what’s more, my baking efforts will be video recorded and posted on our website, Facebook, and Youtube pages so that you can learn from my mistakes! Emerald or Martha Stewart I am not, but it should be fun all the same, and we will also be selling T-shirts in honor of the occasion. Please stay tuned for more information on how to get your T-shirt for this entirely unique summer festival/raffle. Hope everyone is hanging in there as we continue to journey together through this strange time, and please let me know if I can be of help to you in any way.
God bless!
Fr. Marc
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