Parish Update – Friday, Feb. 19
Happy Friday, y’all! I start this update every week about this time with that particular greeting, but to be honest, a few days ago I wasn’t sure we’d even make it to Friday. Yet, here we are. Thank you, Jesus! What a week it has been. I pray that you and your loved ones are safe and warm with power and water aplenty.
I’ve heard from many of you and seen on social media that a number of our parishioners are dealing with broken pipes and various water-related issues. I pray you are able to get the necessary repairs done soon. If we can assist from the parish, please let us know, and while we don’t have a pool of teams of volunteers to send out like we did after Hurricane Harvey, we will try our best to match up those who might be able to lend a hand with those in need.
Unfortunately the parish joined the “burst pipe club,” too, when on Tuesday a fire sprinkler drain valve broke and sent water over the first floor of the Redeemer Activity Center (RAC). Water found its way through the gym, hallways, classrooms, and into the auditorium. It wasn’t deep, but it was wide. We got crews on site immediately and the building is drying out at this moment. The Archdiocese has a contract with ServiceMaster for just these sorts of problems, and David Prieto, our Director of Facilities, and I have already met with them and our contractor. We expect to be displaced from it for only a week, so all in all, it could’ve been much worse. We’ll get a few bids for repairs (mostly cosmetic in nature and all covered by our insurance) and we'll have it back in shipshape in short order. It won’t disrupt our school activities or Youth Ministry (the 2nd floor was not impacted) too much and for that we are grateful.
And during all of that, of course, Lent began. We ended up reducing our six planned Ash Wednesday services to just one, and I pray you were able to join us for the livestream of the Mass. I’m sorry that most of you did not get the opportunity for ashes this year, but remember they are but a sacramental – an outward sign of the interior renewal that Lent is really all about. Don’t fret if your heart and mind was elsewhere this week. We’ll hit the spiritual reset button and get going in our 40 days this weekend with the 1st Sunday of Lent. Our gospel from St. Mark is short and sweet and sets the tone for these coming days, “This is the time of fulfillment. The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel.” Not much more needs to be said. May God’s warming rays of love be upon us as we hear those words.
Now, onto the news and notes around CtR this week:
• We invite you to please join us for Mass either in person or via our livestream on Sunday at 9 a.m. on both our Facebook and YouTube pages. You can find the link to the livestream at www.ctrcc.com/live-stream, and in addition, you’ll find there both a worship aid and a link to the Scripture readings to follow along with Mass. And you can make your weekly offertory contribution online at www.ctrcc.com/donate. Thanks to everyone for your continued support of the parish in these days. … If you’d like to join us in person for Mass, we welcome you on Saturday at 5 p.m., or Sunday at 7, 9, and 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. Of course, be mindful of the ongoing pandemic, and stay at home (and join the livestream) if you or a loved one has been exposed.
• Our planned first Knights of Columbus Fish Fry in Lent will not take place tonight, but rather will begin next week. We’ve got a number of Knights who are dealing with water woes in their homes and we’re unsure how many would be able to help staff it. In addition, though our water and electricity is up and running, I’m a bit concerned it could shut off again at some point during service and that would not be good. And with the hard freeze (last one I hope!) forecast for tonight, it just makes sense for us to pause one week and hit the ground running next Friday, Feb. 26. Please plan to join us then. Remember it will be take-out only this year from 4:30-7:30 p.m. each Friday of Lent starting next week.
• We will, however, hold Stations of the Cross tonight in the church at 7 p.m. I invite you to join us. It will not be livestreamed this week, but I’m hopeful we will begin to offer that next Friday. Stations usually take about 30-45 minutes, and they set a nice tone for our prayer in Lent. We’ll observe the same social distancing procedures as we do on Sundays (masks must be worn, 50 percent capacity, etc.), and we’ll have copies of the Stations prayer service for you to follow along.
• We will hear confessions tomorrow at our regular time of 9 a.m. in the chapel, but next Saturday, Feb. 27, they will be delayed as we have our First Reconciliation for our children who will make First Communion later in the spring. We have two sessions of kids next week at 8:30 and 10 a.m., so any adults are welcome to come toward the end of the second group around 11 a.m. Or remember we’re happy to schedule a time during the week if you’ll just email us at priests@ctrcc.com. There will be no parish-wide Lenten Penance Service this year in an effort to minimize possible exposure for our visiting priests.
• I saved the best news until last! Please keep our three men from CtR, David Carrasco, Mike Jones, and Daniel Ruvalcaba, in your prayers as they will be ordained to the Sacred Order of the Diaconate tomorrow for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. It's not open to the public this year, unfortunately, but you can watch the Mass of Ordination beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday on the Archdiocesan website at www.archgh.org/live. ... Please join me in thanking Almighty God for the gifts of these new deacons, and please pray for them as they begin their ministry as ordained clergy for the Church. You’ll see them serving at Mass as deacons for the first time this Sunday at the 9 a.m., 11 a.m., and 5 p.m. Sunday masses, and then they’ll rotate to all of the masses over the next several weeks. We congratulate our new deacons, the spouses, and their families. It’s a long road (six years!) to become a deacon and they have persevered in prayer and study. May God bless them in their service to the Church!
Our Lady of the Sun, pray for us!
Peace, Fr. Sean
