The Diocese of Jackson issued revised protocols for our parishes last week. Starting the week of May 24 and going forward, these are the protocols that will be in place at St Jude for Mass based upon the on-going reality of the pandemic:
Social distancing will be at 3 feet. Every pew in the church will be open. We ask parishioners to be aware of where they sit in relation to others. Please give fellow parishioners plenty of space and stagger seating in the pews when possible.
Masks are strongly encouraged for those who are not vaccinated and for children and youth under 16 years old. However, families and individuals may make the decision to use masks considering the risks involved after prayerful discernment.
Anyone, especially those individuals who have compromised immune systems and other underlying health conditions, may choose to still wear masks and are encouraged to do so. Those individuals who are not comfortable inside with others who are unmasked are encouraged to attend the drive-in Mass or one of the weekday daily Masses as a safe option of attending Mass at St Jude.
We will continue to offer the 6:00 pm Saturday evening Mass in the cars at the drive-in in the parish parking lot.
We will resume our entrance procession and recessional procession down the main aisle.
We encourage the faithful to receive Holy Communion in the hand, since this is the safest way to do so during the pandemic. However, we will allow Holy Communion on the tongue at the end of the communion time, having families come together, and sanitizing after each family unit receives Holy Communion on the tongue.
We will continue to have the offertory basket at the table at the entrance of the church.
Hymnals will return to the pews.
Hand sanitizer will be available to parishioners upon entrance to the church.
We will continue to hand out bulletins at the church but we also will email bulletins through Flocknote.
Priests and eucharistic ministers will wear masks when distributing Holy Communion. Parishioners may come up to receive Holy Communion without masks or they may choose to wear masks.
Signing up for mass will no longer be offered. With these new protocols and social distancing, we should be able to accommodate everyone at Mass, especially with five Masses offered each weekend.
We want to thank all of you for your efforts in helping keep all of us safe at St Jude during the pandemic. We acknowledge that all of us are very weary of dealing with the pandemic. However, we acknowledge that this still is not the time to let our guard down completely. We will continue to monitor the situation and will issue modified guidelines when the reality of the pandemic changes. Blessings to all of you during these challenging times.
Father Lincoln Dall
Pastor
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