Church of St. Joseph
PO Box 277
Wurtsboro, NY 12790

 March 17, 2020
 
Dear Friend of St. Joseph’s Parish,

            As I typed the date, I was painfully aware that this March 17th is a historic occasion. Since before the revolutionary War, there always has been a St. Patrick’s Day Parade in New York City - through wartime and peace, through times of anti-Catholic bigotry, in harsh and snowy weather - until this year!! The cancellation of the Parade underscores the gravity of our health crisis.
 
            So does the suspending of Sunday Masses throughout the Archdiocese! In my entire lifetime, there never was a Sunday when Mass was not celebrated - blizzard, hurricane, “9-11,” some few hardy souls would show up in every parish church and there would be Mass.
           
            The Cardinal’s decision to suspend Sunday Masses is, of course, the safest option. Nevertheless, my first reaction to the e-mail was visceral. I got dizzy; my head ached; my heart was racing. It took me a while to figure out what was going on inside me.
 
            First, I was angry at the seeming intrusion of the State into the Church’s rightful domain. But then I asked myself, “What of this ‘common good’ that the Church teaches us must often take precedence over our individual rights?” According to Church doctrine, the civil authority has an obligation in justice to insure, as far as possible, the safety of its constituents. My anger was an understandable emotional response to sudden, disruptive news. But it was not an acceptable position to maintain.
 
            Then, I became disoriented. Not say Mass?? But that’s what I do! And, by the Sacrament of Holy Orders, what I do is what I am!! Without the Sunday gathering of my people, without offering some application of  God’s Word to our everyday life, without the blessing, breaking and sharing of the Bread of Eucharist, my weekends are  without point.
 
            It took a couple of hours - and a nap! - to get my head on straight. What became uppermost in my mind was the question how to continue to minister to you in these frightening times. Providing the hope and consolation that come from our Faith is one of the primary reasons for the Church’s existence. Finally, and with God’s grace, a few thoughts emerged from the fog.
 
            The first is to remind you of an age-old practice called “Spiritual Communion.” In former years, when the fast before Communion began at midnight, people often came to Mass unable to receive the Eucharist because they were out after midnight at a party or other engagement at which they broke the fast. Others were conscious of grave sin and had not been to Confession in too long a time. We were taught that, as others approached the Communion railing, we could kneel in our pew, examine our conscience, make a sincere Act of Contrition and then ask the Lord Jesus, in His mercy and kindness, to give us the graces that would have been ours had we been able to receive the Host. In these weeks - and we don’t know yet for how long - when we are unable to attend Sunday Mass, this is still a worthwhile alternative. If you have school-age children, explain the same teaching to them. Perhaps the entire family could take a few moments to read a belief Scripture passage and, privately or together, practice this Spiritual Communion.
 
            The second is to tell you that the suspension of Masses also applies to weekday Masses and - with some exceptions - to funerals, weddings and baptisms. Since all gatherings of people are discouraged, the same would apply to the Friday Stations of the Cross and to Archdiocesan Confession Day - if we are not back to normal services by Holy Week.
 
            I am also leaving the church building open during the daytime and early evening for private prayer.  The need for people to find a safe haven and to seek solace overrides the security challenges. I will trust that God will protect us.
                       
            Perhaps our Catholic community here in Wurtsboro will benefit from the temporary loss of Mass.  The old rock ’n’ roll song said, “You don’t know what you’ve got, until you lose it.” (For my trivia buffs, the singer was Ral Donner, an Elvis wannabe.) Maybe the sudden deprivation of Mass might help some folks who have been treating Mass as merely one option in a smorgasbord of weekend activities to come to a renewed appreciation of the value of the Eucharist and to make it once again a priority? Then, should we be allowed to reconvene for Holy Week and Easter, our community would experience a genuine resurrection.
 
            I was reminded also that the unavailability of Mass which so stunned us is a reality millions of Catholics worldwide experience on a permanent basis - no priests, no missionaries, hostile governments, physical danger, violent persecution. (It was the topic of the recent meeting of the Synod of Bishops of the Amazon Basin.) We in America have been blessed to live in a country where we have religious freedom. But, as the “Up With People” people used to sing in the Swinging Sixties: “Freedom isn’t free! Freedom isn’t free! We have to pay the price, we have to sacrifice, for our liberty.” Hmmm.
 
            The Cardinal’s decision shared the media spotlight with stories of hoarding, price gouging and violence among shoppers in area stores. The same obligation in justice to the “common good” that was a corrective to my gut-level anger imposes a grave obligation in conscience on all of us. Parents and heads of households have a two-fold moral responsibility, governed by the fourth, fifth and seventh commandments. First, we must assure the well-being of those entrusted to our care. Reasonable storing of essentials fulfills this requirement; but reckless, greedy stockpiling does not. It is understandable that panic can drive people to behave without regard for others. Understandable; not excusable. As this crisis continues, we are all called to walk a fine line between necessary self-preservation and justice toward others.
 
            One final thought. The cost of providing Sunday worship is minimal. Altar wine costs about $ 20 a bottle; communion wafers, about $ 150 bi-monthly. The electricity we burn for four hours is only a fraction of our monthly bill. Only the heat is a significant expense and, even there, oil prices are rapidly falling. But the Sunday Collection is the main source of revenue for all the ongoing expenses of the parish - costs that will NOT go away even while Mass is suspended. This is a “lose-lose.” Ordinarily, when parishioners have been away from Mass for several weeks, they catch up with their envelopes. This time around, for many of you, that may not be possible, as the curtailment of business will lead to a loss of family income. I am urging those who can do so to mail in their weekly Offerings if at all possible. If necessary, we can “borrow” about $ 10,000 from the parish savings account. I will try to introduce some austerity measures to reduce costs. 
 
            Hoping that we all will weather this storm with courage, common sense and the virtue of Hope given us by our Baptismal grace; and that we will be reassembled as a more appreciative and devout worshiping community,
            
            With great affection and prayer for your health and safety, 

 Fr.  Pete