Instructions for opening the church
St. Thomas More Catholic Church
Re-opening to Mass Attendance
Dear Parishioners and Guests:
The First Pentecost gave birth to The Church. This Pentecost our beloved parish is reborn and open to public Mass attendance.
Rev. Alex Vargas and I are so excited to welcome you home to your church.
We have prepared for this day with a special treatment that eliminates all viruses,
microbes, mold, fungus, and leaves behind no residue, only a clean environment for our worship.
Our Bishop has set forth guidelines for the conduct of the Mass, but I would like to set before
you our own procedures to assure that we have a healthy and holy experience.
LITURGICAL CHANGES
Collection will be taken with a safe net without the
need to touch baskets.
There will be no presentations of the gifts of bread and wine.
NO KISS OF PEACE
Please acknowledge each other, but no personal contact.
HOLY COMMUNION
Only the Priest and Masters of Ceremony will distribute Communion. They will wear linen gloves and use tongs to avoid all physical contact.
Reception will be ON THE HAND ONLY.
Maintain a safe distance as you make come to Communion.
Our Staff will assist you.
Those who are unable to stand or walk use the designation pews for handicapped persons please. We will come to you.
WASH YOUR HAND
Please wash your hands before coming to church. We also provide hand sanitizer at the entrances and our staff will assist you.
WEAR MASKS
It is recommended that you wear masks if you are in a high risk category, or if you are anxious in any way.
EVERY OTHER PEW
Please maintain social distancing and sit in every other pew. Families and couples of course may remain together.
NO GATHERING BEFORE OR AFTER MASS
As much as you will be excited to see your friends and exchange greetings, please, no grouping up before or after Mass, including for group prayers.
BLESSING OF ITEMS
We can bless items outside of the church after the Mass has ended. But we must avoid personal contact.
SEATING CAPACITY & OVERFLOW
The Daily Chapel, Family Room, and Balcony are off-limits at this time. If we reach full capacity using every other pew in the Church, we will have an Overflow Mass in the Parish Center with appropriate spacing.
This would most likely occur at 10:30 am or 12:30 pm Masses on Sundays. But there will be room for you.
FOR THOSE WHO ARE NOT READY TO ENTER THE CHURCH
LIVE-STREAMED MASSES
We will continue to live-stream the daily Mass,
Monday-Friday at 5:30 pm.
Weekend Masses at 4:00 and 7:15 pm on Saturday and 10:30 and 12:30 pm on Sundays will be live-broadcast.
Sunday evenings Mass in English at 5:30 pm and 7:00 pm in Spanish.
DRIVE THROUGH COMMUNION
We will offer Drive-Through Communion by the Grotto of Our Lady on Sundays from 2:00-3:00 pm. There will be a Sheriff to provide traffic control and staff to guide you through the campus to the Priests and Masters of Ceremony.
DISPENSATION
Our Bishop has given us his suggested guidelines and you may consult them here, but please follow our local instructions that incorporate best practices at St. Thomas More Parish that we have learned over many weeks.
ONLINE GIVING
We are grateful for your financial support and suggest that you contribute online to STM Parish and the Live-Streaming Ministry. We have done all that we can to keep the Church and Academy alive, but we cannot do this without your donations and offerings.
Rev. Alex Vargas joins me and my entire staff in thanking God for you and for your return to the Eucharist.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Julian Harris, Pastor