Dear Parishioners,

Well, we had a rather eventful weather week – cold, wet, windy…   Sacred Heart Church managed to blow a radiator pipe and then loose part of the copper roof sheathing, but other than that, I think we survived reasonably well.  I hope your homes are warm and dry.  I will say that I’m not looking forward to signing the next natural gas bill with this cold weather we’ve been having!

Not only has the weather been rough, but we’ve been enduring another surge of this pandemic that seems to never end.  Many parishioners have been falling sick in recent weeks with the new Omicron variant, which thankfully seems to be less severe than previous variants, but is serious and concerning none-the-less.  I have noticed that our numbers at Mass have dipped a bit, which makes sense, given how many have been experiencing cold and flu-like symptoms.  Testing is not always reliable or available, so when we feel sick these days it is best to stay home.  The Bishop and I were talking at dinner this week about all of this, and he has heard from a number of people who are concerned about doing all we can to keep the spread of this virus to a minimum.  I agree and have seen that, following the Bishop’s strong recommendation, most people have been wearing masks at Mass during the recent weeks that we’ve gone through this surge.  
Navigating our Covid response has not been easy. Many people have very strong ideas on what should be recommended or required – I don’t envy the Bishop.  Make sure you keep him in your prayers, as no matter what he does he is bound to upset people.  

My hope and prayer is that this most recent surge will be short and less severe, as many experts seem to be predicting.  Please join me in keeping those who are sick and struggling in your prayers.  This has been a long couple of years, and many people are just tired out – especially health care workers, teachers, and others who spend long hours working with the public.  How important that we can drag our tired selves to church and turn these things over to the Lord, asking him for strength and serenity as we weather yet another storm.  I am so inspired by all of you who continue to persevere in your faith and go out of your way to be near to Christ and care for others, despite the adversity.  Even the stormy times we live in can’t obscure these signs of God’s grace at work among us.

Know of my prayers for you!
 

Fr. Seamus