Church Building Now Empty

Dear Parishioners,

This past week has been an important yet emotional step in our journey to our new church building. Thank you to all the many people who came this past week to help prepare our church by preserving all the items that are important to us while also removing the items that needed to be thrown away or given away for other noble purposes. 

While Tuesday was our official day for the “Church Clean Out Work Day,” we had many people come on Monday to help us get ahead in this needed task. On this following Monday (June 26), the church building will be off limits to all as asbestos abatement begins. It is scheduled to last for two weeks.  At the time this posting went live, we have a demolition date for July 10th. I don't know what time this will be, but keep your eyes peeled to our parish Facebook and Twitter feeds for the latest. 

In addition to preparing the church building for demolition, we have settled into a routine for daily Mass. If you come to daily Mass, each parishioner needs to immediately take notice that they will be responsible for placing a host in the paten to be brought forward at the Preparation of the Gifts.  This is one benefits of no longer having two entrances and two sides to our gathering space. Now, we can more easily fulfill the Church’s guidelines that tell us that the hosts to be brought forward should only be the ones needed for the community at that Mass. As for Sunday celebrations, our sacristans will continue to get rough counts of those who have come for Mass and make sure the number of hosts is appropriate. In addition, we continue to have a reserved number of hosts for the sick in our Tabernacle so that our Homebound Ministers can bring Christ to the sick.

As always, please keep this courageous and faith-filled enterprise in your prayers.  And, again, thank you to all who gave of their time and talent this past week to help prepare the church for asbestos abatement.

Blessings,

Fr. William Holtzinger
Pastor

Moving & Working Together

Dear Parishioners,

As we have shared previously, our last weekend in the church is June 17-18.  At the end of the 11 AM Mass on June 18th, we will formally strip the altar, remove the Blessed Sacrament and Holy Oils, and process in solemnity and joy from the church to the Parish Center for a short time of adoration and prayer.  In the days that follow that weekend, we need to begin to prepare the church for asbestos abatement and later demolition. This is where we, as church, can help out. We will have to unbolt the pews, removed the sound system and statues, and many other things.  A “honey-do” list will be created as well as dates as best as we can for these and other activities.  We will advertise these things when we know them more definitively.

Please keep this whole process in your prayers. We are now getting to the phase where things are not just being done in committees, but happening in front of our very eyes. We, ourselves, will need to move and get used to a new “field-church” situation in the Parish Center. We have only three more weekends left in our current building!

May charity and joy reign in our hearts. May we continually lean on the Lord for guidance and strength. And as it is written in Ephesians 1:17 from today’s Mass, “May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, give [us] a Spirit of wisdom and revelation resulting in knowledge of him.”  For the greater glory of God and the increase of the Faith are why we do what we do. May he bless our hands and hearts in the weeks and months ahead.

Blessings,

Fr. William Holtzinger
Pastor