Building the Kingdom in Faith Through Serving

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Message from Fr. Bradley, April 1, 2020

Dear Parish Family, 

We miss sharing the Sacraments with you and enjoying our normal fellowship as a parish family, especially as we begin this Holy Season. Please allow me to apologize for the "Holy Week mailing" that was sent in the mail this week. We were not able to cancel the order with our supplier in time. Sorry about any confusion this may have caused. As you can guess, our Holy Week will look much different this year. 

Bishop Burns has issued a "Shelter in Place" policy for all parishes in the Diocese of Dallas. This action is due to the danger of the “COVID 19 Virus”, and the current policies of our civil and health authorities. This includes Collin County as well as all other counties in our diocesan jurisdiction.  Parish campuses will not be publicly celebrating sacraments or providing gatherings of the faithful until April 30th, or until further notice. There will be no public Masses, Confession or Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, or other events, and the staff will be working from home. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parish will be closed to the public until April 30. We regret this, but we wish everyone to be safe.

This Palm Sunday we will not be distributing blessed Palms due to the “Shelter in Place” policy.  We will preserve the palms and distribute them at a later date to be determined by the diocese.

These guidelines are given out of charity and concern, that the members of our community are kept safe. We do not wish to become carriers of the coronavirus to others. Also, our hope is that by reducing the number of infected persons, we will help support the work of our local hospitals and caregivers. Each measure we take may be small, but together can make a large positive effect. We should be willing to make a sacrifice for others. At this time we can express our faith in prayer, reflection, and in love for others. Our Lord never abandons us.

In the meantime learn to make an “Act of Spiritual Communion” when unable to attend Mass. Learn also to sincerely make an “A Perfect Act of Contrition” when unable to use the Sacrament of Reconciliation, or confession.  Examples of these devotions are on our website, and on other resources as well. Recently, Pope Francis has specifically recommended the use of both these spiritual actions, especially in the face of this world wide epidemic. We update our bulletin weekly and you can find all the updates in the bulletin online on our website.

PERFECT CONTRITION pdf written by Gregory Cardi, Chancelor of the Diocese of Dallas

If you have an urgent need for a priest we ask you to call the main parish office at 972-596-5505 and the answering service can assist you. 

Know that Bishop Burns has dispensed us from the obligation to attend Sunday Mass until April 30. However, I highly encourage you to make an “Act of Spiritual Communion” by praying with the Mass on your computer or TV. See links below. One of the many options for Mass this Sunday is to join our own Bishops this Sunday in prayer on Fox 4 channel at 11:00 a.m. live from the Dallas Cathedral.

Lastly, my plan is to send you a weekly message/video - not so much about updates, but centered on hope and what we can do to be encouraged during this difficult time. Look for those soon.

Please continue to pray, fast and support those in need. It is times like this when our faith is needed more than ever. Stay safe. Stay well. Stay at home for now. May God bless you and your loved ones.

Yours,
Father Bruce Bradley 

Additional Decree by Bishop Edward J. Burns and Holy Week Guidelines

This Decree remains in effect until May 1, 2020 unless it is modified or revoked.

Governor Greg Abbott brought forth a statement today indicating that church services are considered essential and continued to highlight the need for them to be online or video streamed. The safety of our faithful, clergy and our community at large are our utmost priority during these difficult and challenging times. By example, the Holy Father has indicated that liturgical celebrations from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday ought to take place without the presence of the faithful in the interest of public safety.  

While we know that there is not a government ban on holding church services, it would be impossible to keep crowds to 10 or less, maintain social distancing or adhere to other CDC guidelines during Mass and other services in our churches.

Therefore, the Diocese of Dallas has issued a decree continuing the suspension of public liturgical celebrations and of all parish events. The Diocese will continue to provide on-line faith resources  and broadcast Masses for the faithful through at least May 1, 2020.

DECREE OF MARCH 31, 2020 (PDF)

HOLY WEEK 2020 GUIDELINES (PDF)

Scheduled Broadcasts from the Cathedral for this Weekend

Sunday, April 5

11:00 a.m. - Sunday Mass in English with Bishop Edward J. Burns from Cathedral Guadalupe

All videos are available any time after their premiere at https://cathdal.org/videos.