Hooray! It’s Pentecost! The Holy Spirit has been unleashed upon us!! Thanks to the hard work of our re-opening leadership team, Fr. Mark, Jolene LeRoy, Bob Gancarz, Phil Zwick, Len Eickhoff, and Phyllis Anderson, I am pleased to inform you that our parish has received certification from the Diocese of Joliet to begin scheduling confession times, baptisms, weddings, funerals, private prayer times and Eucharistic adoration. We are the first parish in the Diocese to receive certification. ALL of these celebrations have the following requirements:

• 10 people maximum (excluding celebrant and assisting minister(s)

• Face masks must be worn at all times

• 6 foot social distancing must be maintained at all times (except those living in same house)

• Hand sanitizing upon entering and exiting church

Confessions will begin on May 26. The last week in May and first two weeks in June we will be scheduling confession times only. The schedule for confessions and directions for anonymously reserving a time are on our website.

We will add scheduled times for private prayer and Eucharistic adoration beginning the week of June 14.

We have also been certified by the Diocese to begin weekday and Sunday Masses. However, we may not begin celebrating public Masses, weekday or Sunday, until the Governor allows churches to open for public worship. When this happens, it will likely be limited to a certain percentage of our seating capacity. We have planned for 20% occupancy, which means 200 people at a Mass. We have planned to celebrate four Masses on the weekend. We will continue to livestream Sunday Mass at 9:00AM and weekday Masses at 8:00AM. Like confessions, an online reservation system will be used for Sunday Masses.

For those who do not have access to the internet, you can make a reservation for confessions (and Mass when we are permitted to celebrate) by calling Zara Tan at 331.707.5381.

I know this has been a very challenging and difficult time. You have missed reception of the sacraments and the solace and spiritual comfort they provide. You have missed the quiet and peace of praying in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. You have missed community, and we have missed you!! It has been a messy time for all of us, but remember, God is in the mess too! God is with us! And so too is the power of the Holy Spirit!!

Have a Blessed week!

Father Don