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July 8, 2021When I was a kid growing up, like everyone else, we would celebrate the 4th of July by going to a nearby town for fireworks. I remember telling my Mom that I wished we could have fireworks every day, and in her wisdom, she said “if you had anything every day, it wouldn’t be so special. You’d get bored of it pretty quickly!” I think of her and this wisdom as I listen to fireworks being set off in my neighborhood every night now; they are definitely less special to me these days!
This wisdom applies, too, when I think of how the pandemic has affected my experience of going to Mass. I see now that I took Mass, and receiving Eucharist, for granted before Covid. It was something I could do and always did; maybe its availability made it less special to me.
After a while without receiving Christ in the Eucharist, I was so hungry for it. Even though I missed my familiar setting and music and all the movements of Mass in a church, I was grateful to receive it in a parking lot, from a chair on the lawn or through a car window. I am so grateful that Fr. Murray and our team worked so hard to make it possible to receive the Eucharist and to be with each other, in whatever way possible.
Lately, a few people have called or emailed us to ask when our churches will be open again. With gratitude, I am glad to say that we’ve been open all along. Even when our doors were shut, our Church has been open; living our mission to be centered in the Eucharist, in times where we could receive Communion, and in times when we could not.
We’ve heard lately that some are not satisfied to attend Mass in a basement or a parking lot or a different setting than where they prefer, and we understand. Nothing about the past year or so has been what anyone would prefer. But we have worked hard to stay true to our mission, and we have seen the fruits of that work, and the movement of the Holy Spirit so clearly.
So, as we move into the future (whatever that holds), we hope you agree that it is not the familiarity of Mass that makes it special. We hope you’ll be hungry for the Eucharist in whatever setting it is offered, and that receiving the Eucharist will be special to you, wherever you receive it. And we hope you'll join us on Sundays for Mass. Check out our worship schedule on our front page or here.
