St. Joseph Catholic Church

Shrine in the Nation’s Capital to be Part of a Global Marathon of Prayer for an End to the COVID Pandemic May 8, 2021 WASHINGTON - Pope Francis has called for a “marathon” of prayer during the month of May to appeal for divine assistance in bringing about an end to the COVID pandemic. Marian shrines around the world have been chosen by the Holy See to lead the rosary each day of the month. In the United States, the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. has been asked to lead the rosary on Monday, May 17. Cardinal Wilton Gregory, archbishop of Washington, will lead the recitation of the rosary at 12:00 PM ET that day for the special intention of world leaders and the heads of international organizations as they continue to work to combat the pandemic. The faithful are invited to join online, and the prayer will be livestreamed on the shrine’s website at: www.nationalshrine.org/mass. In addition, the national shrine is able to accommodate 1,000 people while maintaining appropriate social distancing in its Great Upper Church; those wishing to attend in person are invited to register at: www.nationalshrine.org/mass-registration. This month-long initiative of prayer is being organized by the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization. The shrines chosen for each day of prayer reflect the global reach and diversity of the Catholic Church, as each prays in their local language. For more information on this worldwide effort, please visit: http://www.pcpne.va/content/pcpne/en/news/2021-04-23.html

Beginning May1/2 St. Joseph's will implement the following with regard to the letter from the Diocese.
1)continue taking temperatures
2) continue wearing masks
3)have a section for open seating as well as a section for socially distanced seating
4) Discontinue disinfecting pews between services 
5)begin using Eucharistic ministers again at mass
6) Ushers will begin taking up collection again
7)continue to receive communion in the hand

 
Subject: [priestsls] Revised Protocols for Sunday and Daily Mass


Good afternoon Fathers,

As more and more people in our communities receive COVID-19 vaccinations and the infection rate continues to decrease, we have revised the protocols for the celebration of the sacraments.  These revised protocols are less directive, so that each pastor might continue using his prudential judgment in promoting the best practices for his particular community.  While we have not arrived at the moment when the protocols can be fully rescinded, we have removed the protocol for spacing between households and sanitizing the church between Masses.   

This means that a pastor may choose to remove the tape/ropes from the pews and allow people to sit where they wish.  This does not change the need for all people to remain aware of their distancing between households as a courtesy to the other and continued effort at mitigating spread.  Wearing facemasks should continue, as they will allow for the opening of pews due to COVID-19 mainly spread through the air.  The removal of the sanitizing between Mass protocol is based on recent data from a number of sources indicating that the virus has a very low chance of spreading by touching surfaces.
 

Buenas tardes padres,

A medida que más y más personas en nuestras comunidades reciben vacunas de COVID-19 y la tasa de infección continúa disminuyendo, hemos revisado los protocolos para la celebración de los sacramentos. Estos protocolos revisados ​​son menos directivas, de modo que cada pastor pueda continuar usando su juicio prudencial para promover las mejores prácticas para su comunidad en particular. Si bien no hemos llegado al momento en que los protocolos pueden rescindirse por completo, hemos eliminado el protocolo para espaciar los hogares y desinfectar la iglesia entre misas.

Esto significa que un pastor puede optar por quitar la cinta/cuerdas de las bancas y permitir que las personas se sienten donde deseen.  Esto no cambia la necesidad de que todas las personas sean conscientes de su distanciamiento entre hogares como una cortesía hacia el otro y un esfuerzo continuo para mitigar la propagación.  El uso de mascarillas debe continuar, ya que permitirán la apertura de bancos debido a que COVID-19 se propaga principalmente por el aire.  La eliminación del protocolo de desinfección entre masas se basa en datos recientes de varias fuentes que indican que el virus tiene una probabilidad muy baja de propagarse al tocar superficies.