Holy Spirit, Come!

Brothers and Sisters of Saint John's,

This week has been one unlike any other. We are all reeling from the death of George Floyd and the rioting that has taken root in the Twin Cities. The Coronavirus lock-down is still underway, although slowly lifting. National and local politics are extremely contentious and tense. People are isolated, scared, angry and confused. Where is God?

You're not alone if you've been thinking, "All these bad things are happening, and God doesn’t seem to be doing anything about it." I'll take a page out of Director of Faith Formation Joe Block's book, here, and tease to what he speaks about in our upcoming bulletin: Wrestle with this question, uncomfortable as it might be.

One word of caution: Don’t wrestle with it in an isolated, individualistic, cynical way. Wrestle with it in God’s presence. Take it directly to Him. Wrestle with it in Church, in the presence of the Tabernacle, or by yourself deep in nature with God’s beauty surrounding you. Wrestle with God in silence.  

Where is God in your life today? How have you welcomed the Holy Spirit in this Pentecost? Have you been open to receiving Him? He is knocking this weekend, assuredly. He is gusting with the wind. Perhaps God has a new mission for you and I. Perhaps the world is seemingly crumbling around us so that, out of the rubble, Catholics might arise with the love and grace of God as their strength, and they might bring His love to a broken world, which has suddenly become aware how desperately it needs a Savior. 
 

Return to Worship Plan

Here at Saint John’s, we continue to follow all Archdiocesan direction regarding a slow and safe return to Mass. Keep in mind that the Archbishop's dispensation from Sunday Mass continues throughout this pandemic, so those most at risk or in regular contact with them, as well as the sick, should continue to stay at home. The health of our most vulnerable is and must continue to be top of mind for all of us as we begin to gather again. We will continue to live stream our 4:30 PM Saturday Masses throughout this transition. 

Updates Since Last Week:

We wanted to share a couple of notable items that didn’t make it into last week’s bulletin. These are to ensure our cleanliness standards and proper sanitization:

• Be sure only to use the main church (back) doors when entering the church. Unless otherwise noted, the Gathering Space doors are for school entrance or church exiting only.

• The Adoration Chapel, along with the Choir Loft, meeting rooms, children’s room and sacristy are closed to the general public; volunteers might have access if previously directed by a staff member.

Before You Come:

When you are ready to return to Mass, please ensure you take these precautions:

• Use the restroom before departing for Mass, and have your entire family do the same.

• Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water for more than 20 seconds.

• Avoid touching your face/eyes from the time you leave your house to the time you return.

• Consider bringing your own hand sanitizer and/or sanitizing wipes; use these upon leaving your vehicle.

• Wear a face mask; the Archdiocese strongly recommends your entire family (ages 2+) be equipped with face masks. Put on these masks before exiting your vehicle.

• Enter the church from the main (back) doors only. Follow the instructions posted on the signage, and as directed to you by our ushers/greeters.

What We’re Doing:

The cleaning protocol we will follow to sanitize our worship space after every service is likely more rigorous than what you’ve seen in the stores you’ve frequented during the Stay in Place order. In an effort to maintain social distancing standards, you will see limited access points to the church, to ensure one-way flow of traffic. There is increased signage and greeter/usher presence to help maintain these best practices. Please be patient and diligent about following all of these guidelines, to ensure we can successfully continue forward. Staff continue to do the following to prepare for a safe return:

• Limiting access to the building to ensure one-way traffic flow, in compliance with the Archbishop’s direction.

• Encouraging anyone age 65 and older, any other vulnerable class, their caregivers and the sick to remain home.

• Training all our essential staff, ushers and volunteers on new protocol for flow of traffic and sanitation.

• Amending our Mass, service and meeting schedules to allow for cleaning/sanitation.

• Securing hand sanitizing stations at all access points.

• Posting signage to answer questions you might have.

• Committing to continued communication via our website regarding any updates to our schedule (daily), and as we’re able via the bulletin and e-newsletters. 

Under this current guidance from the Archdiocese (which is always subject to change), we are proceeding with the following schedule:

Adoration

10:00 AM Monday-Friday (in the church, the Adoration Chapel is closed)

Confession

10:00 AM Tuesday-Friday

3:30 PM Saturday

Mass

11:00 AM Tuesday-Friday

4:30 PM Saturday (also live-streamed on Facebook)

8:30 and 10:30 AM Sunday

Church hours (access from main (back) church doors only)

8:30 AM-Noon Mon.-Fri.

3:30-5:30 PM Sat.

8:00-9:30 AM & 10:00-11:30 AM Sun.

Parish Office hours (access through office doors off Little Canada Road)

8:30-Noon Mon.-Thu., May 26-August 

School Office summer hours (access through Gathering Space)

8:00 AM-1 PM Mon-Thu, June 1-July 2 and Aug. 3-28

Eagle Club hours (access through Eagle Club door off Little Canada Road)

7:00 AM to 5:00 PM Mon.-Fri., June 1-Aug. 28

Read more about Saint John’s plans regarding COVID-19 on our website, www.sjolc.org/covid-19.
 

Restorative Justice: Father Dan Griffith at Saint John's Ascension Mass

I want to call a special attention to our guest celebrants from Memorial Day Weekend. Not only did we have Father Fitz return for our annual tradition of blessing the cemetery on Memorial Day itself, we also had Father Dan Griffith from Our Lady of Lourdes in Minneapolis join us to give a very important homily on Restorative Justice. You can still view his Mass on our Director of Liturgy and Music's YouTube channel, click here. Links will also be included on our website.
 

Thank You for Supporting Saint John's School & Culver's

We cannot thank you enough who joined us May 12 at Culver's; the school received 10% of total sales between the hours of 5:00 and 8:00 PM, and that ended up being $316.78! I am heartened by the benefit this does to our local businesses, too, giving Culver's a nice little boost that night.

Additionally, some of you joined in celebrating our eighth-graders in their graduation in an odd year of social distancing. Thank you to the Lehmanns for the photo of our police-escorted parade through Little Canada, and to all who attended to send our graduates out into the world.

Prayers for Peace

At this time of heartbreak and unrest, let us be sure to pray for the cities of our region. It is Pentecost: Let us pray in particular for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, who alone knows how best to pray when our words fail us.

I personally find deep reflection in the Third Glorious Mystery, the Descent of the Holy Spirit Upon the Apostles; consider joining me in this beautiful decade of the Rosary this week, with the intention of Preservation of Peace and Justice, uniting our prayers with those of the Queen of Peace: Mary, Undoer of Knots. 

Peace, 

Father Tom Balluff
Pray the Rosary with Father Tom