Happy Easter, Parish Family! Please join us for Mass this morning. You can view Mass from Our Lady at this link, which will go live at 8 am this morning. (Please note that the video will not work until then.) Our music minister, Scott Ewing, has once again provided a worship aid to help you participate more fully from your homes.
We are sorely missing being with you all on this glorious morning, but even in the midst of COVID-19, Jesus is still risen! We pray that you have a blessed day with your families, and know that we cannot wait to worship you in person once again!
We know Holy Week is going to be a lot different this year. We feel it too. It’s hard when you can’t participate in your usual traditions and family celebrations. But know that we’re all in this together, and we are here to support you in any way we can! Please watch Father Jim’s video message regarding this week’s celebrations:
Below is the video for this weekend’s Palm Sunday Mass. Note that the link will not work until 5 pm, but then it will be available all weekend long to watch at your usual Mass times. Our fantastic Music Minister, Scott, has once again provided a great worship aid to help you more fully participate in the Mass from your homes.
This weekend’s bulletin is now available on our website.
Edit 4.5.20 7:15 pm We have loved seeing all of your greenery on your doors! We have a lot of creative parishioners!
In case you missed it, we have a ton of resources for Holy Week posted on our website.
We wish you all a safe and prayerful Holy Week. Know that all of the Our Lady staff is praying for you, and we can’t wait until we can all worship together again!
We know lots of you have been asking about Holy Week. Boy oh boy, do we have resources and options for you! Below is our plan, made in conjunction with directives from the Diocese.
Palm Sunday
Mass from Our Lady of Perpetual Help
(The link will be made available Saturday afternoon on our website, our facebook page, our YouTube channel, and via email.)
Monday, April 6 – Our Response to This Particular Holy Week Tuesday, April 7 – The Evil that Challenged the Last Supper Wednesday, April 8 – The Blessed Virgin Mary Guiding Us Through Holy Week
Holy Thursday
Mass from St Joseph’s Cathedral
The Chrism Mass – 9 am
Broadcast on St. Gabriel Radio, 820 AM, Columbus, and 88.3 FM, Portsmouth
Eat dinner together as a family. Then strip the table, but remain seated with only candle light. Pray as a family. Blow out the candle and leave the dining area in silence.
Good Friday
Prayer/liturgy: The Celebration of the Passion of the Lord – Noon
Broadcast on St. Gabriel Radio, 820 AM, Columbus, and 88.3 FM, Portsmouth
Activity: At 9 pm Light up your porch to represent Jesus as the light of the world. Use a luminary! We are called to share this light, especially during this unprecedented time of darkness.
Easter Sunday
The link for Mass from Our Lady will be sent out first thing Sunday morning (around 6 am). The link will not work until 8 am, but then the video will be available all day. The link will be posted here on our website, on our YouTube Channel, and our Facebook page.
Easter Sunday Mass from the Cathedral — 10:30 am
Broadcast Live on NBC4 TV, Columbus
Broadcast on St. Gabriel Radio, 820 AM, Columbus, and 88.3 FM, Portsmouth
We also encourage you to check out Catholic Family Crate, which is providing a FREE downloadable Holy Week at Home Success Kit. And Mrs. Dilley, our wonderful CGS coordinator, has been compiling and tailoring some great resources for the families of our Parish. We encourage you to take a look!
Welcome to the beginning of Palm Sunday. This Lent is ending much differently than it began.This year Holy Week is going to look a lot different. In this time of stay-at home-orders and no public Masses, Pope Francis has put out new guidelines for Holy Week liturgies and Bishop Brennan has interpreted those to determine what celebrations will look like in our diocese.
Palm Sunday, April 5
Father Jim will celebrate Palm Sunday Mass in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel at OLPH this weekend. This will be posted on the OLPH Facebook page and YouTube channel Saturday evening at 5pm.
Holy Thursday Mass, April 9
Join Bishop Brennan for Mass of the Lord’s Supper from St. Joseph’s Cathedral at 6:30pm on the Diocesan YouTube channel
Father Jim will celebrate Easter Sunday Mass in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel at OLPH. This will be posted on the OLPH Facebook page and YouTube channel Sunday morning.
AND
Join Bishop Brennan for Easter Sunday Mass at 10:30 on NBC4. Mass will also be posted on the Diocesan YouTube channel
I know we are all challenged by how to do Holy Week this year; when everything looks and feels so very different. The Triduum liturgies have always been a favorite time for my family, and I have struggled with how to still celebrate this most holy week of the year when we are unable to even gather together in the church. I know that I am not alone in this. So, I have attached some resources to help us all make Holy Week a special time in our homes.
ThisHoly Week Family Retreatis full of links for videos, crafts, and even food ideas to help you celebrate as a family. The activities and videos cover a broad age range so they can be done together, as a family! The links for Mass take you to either OLPH with Fr. Jim or the Cathedral with Bishop Brennan. The Holy Week Journal goes along with the retreat and will also work for a variety of ages.
In addition, I have included a couple of fun activities for those of you with younger children. The attached Holy Week Book, is a cute, simple book for beginning readers to make.
The other is a little messier, but lots of fun with handprints! Check out the attachment called – Holy Week Hanprints
I’d also like to direct to an amazing site full of resources for growing your faith at home.
They have put together a wonderful Holy Week at Home packet and it is totally free! Just put in your email to ‘purchase’ this free kit and it will be delivered directly to your inbox! I am so grateful to the entire Catholic community online! There has been such an outpouring of shared resources for everyone as we all try to navigate this new path TOGETHER.
My prayers are with you all!
Finally, I want to share a Palm Sunday message from Fr. Jim
