First Re-Opening Steps As we have been looking at how to re-open safely, we took the first step by quietly opening the Narthex of St. Benedict and the Vestibule of St. Francis to private prayer on Thursday, May 14. St. Benedict will be open weekdays from 9:15 am to 4:30 pm, and St. Francis will be open weekdays from 9:15 am to 2:30 pm. A face mask is required to enter both spaces and social distancing is expected. Staff is available for ongoing cleaning of these spaces throughout the day.
On Saturday, May 16, Fr. Bud and I will begin regular Saturday confessions at St. Benedict at 11:00 am. We will be located under pop-up tents between the church and O’Brien Hall. Again, face masks are required. Please line up down the long sidewalk between the buildings being careful to observe 6-ft. social distancing.
We priests have a conference call with Bishop Zubik today to discuss the new norms for celebrating the sacraments. The emphasis is keeping people safe as we begin to open up in phases, in conjunction with the governor’s guidelines for groups. It’s important to remember that we’re all in this together. The virus can spread in church as easily as in other group settings. We tend to have a larger population of people who come to church whose health is vulnerable. We want to do all we can to keep people as safe as possible while on church property. I remind you that even in the Yellow Phase, the guideline says to stay at home as much as possible.
Online Formation Resources A reminder that St. Benedict the Abbot has had subscription at formed.org for years and still active. Formed.org has thousands of online videos on every aspect of our Catholic faith for various age groups. Feel free to use this resource as much as possible, no matter which of our three parishes you currently belong to. To log on, click on the “Sign Up” button, click the third option “I belong to a Parish or Organization,” then type in “St. Benedict the Abbot.” Click on the first choice that comes up, “120 Abington Drive, McMurray, PA,” then put in your name and an e-mail address, and you’re in.
In addition to formed.org, I call your attention to the advertisement in this week's bulletin a new diocesan-wide initiative with the Alpha program for continuing online formation. We have not used the Alpha program in any of our three parishes, instead focusing on the Christ Life program. But in a time of not being able to gather, the diocese has made available the Alpha Online program. Registration information will be available soon. Feel free to check it out and tell me about your experience with it, as we all continue to look for ways to continue to grow and form our faith remotely over the Internet.