From the pastor’s desk—Oct. 31, 2021

Dear Sacred Heart Family,

So often I get the question, “When we get back to normal?” It is the desire of every human heart to get back to what is familiar and comfortable. I have felt from the beginning of this pandemic, that we will get through it best if our response is a spiritual one. The words that keep coming back to me is, “Behold I make all things new.” (Rev 21:5) which is to say I think we will never go back to what was. We may go back to do the same things we did before, but we do them now without some of our loved ones, without a unity we had before, and without a confidence in public discourse we once had, such is our new normal.

As there have been no new guidelines from our diocese at what point we get to resume our parish activities, the decisions are falling to the pastors. For my part, I have been watching the Springfield Green County Public Health website which posts a Coronavirus “dashboard” showing the current levels of Coronavirus new infections over the last 7 days and the hospitalization rates in Green County. I believe that if we can get out of the red zones on these two indicators, we can have more confidence in our levels of engagement in the parish. I realize, as many do, this virus is not going to completely leave our reality anytime soon so we will have to be flexible to respond to changing situations.

At the point we drop below the red zones, I would like to open up the following suspended activities with an understanding that these are still optional to the degree our members feel comfortable. The first ministry I would like to reestablish at that time will be our altar servers; Br Manolo is giving refresher training in the next few weeks to have them ready when we start. Second, I would like to open up again our senior gatherings on Wednesday mornings after the 8:00 am mass. We will also begin masses with a simple procession and add a second Eucharistic minister to serve our growing numbers. Also, we hope to have our Christmas Craft, Vendor, & Cookie sale in early December. If there are other activities you would like to see resume, please share them with me and I will be happy to see how we can make that happen. Until then let us continue to do the things that keep each other safe and healthy in mind, body, and spirit.

With a heart for Mission,
Fr. Ray