Mass closed during pandemic? What are you doing?

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I’ve been leading my family in the ‘Celebrations of the Word & Communion for Sundays & Weekday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest.’ We’re fortunate to be living on the Rome campus of the University my Wife teaches at, and right behind our apartment is the Campus Chapel. We have a Spiritual Communion rather than the Eucharist, but it keeps us ‘in the game’ so to speak. We dress just like we would for Mass, and we treat Sunday and Holy Days the same way we would any normal Sunday or Holy Day.

It’s something that any one can do, and and for me, it’s been really inspiring to have the role of Spiritual Head of my Family really shown to be outside of praying with my Wife & Kids and reading Scripture & Saint Books with them.
 
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Yes!!

I’ve been praying the LOTH since around October of last year, and when I pray just one Daytime office with others, they love it, but I always get the same response: I love it and would do it everyday, but I don’t have time because of <insert anything you’d like>.

Now, I’ve been getting those same people to pray it more frequently in light of this pandemic. Some friends and I have been gathering online to say Midday and Evening prayer in community.

This whole COVID-19 situation has truly been serving as a retreat of sorts for many I know.
 
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rf9661 said:
This whole COVID-19 situation has truly been serving as a retreat of sorts for many I know.
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Exactly the point by Fr. Thomas Loya:
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The whole world is on Lent - Fr. Thomas Loya Catholic Living
A few weeks ago, everyone probably saw on the news coverage of how Catholics were beginning Lent. Fr. Loya says the whole world is now on Lent: [BOLD TALK "Tabor Life" Fr. Thomas Loya - Coronavirus - It's lent for the Whole World]
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I’m reading, Consecration to St. Joseph, by Father Donald Calloway. Plan on starting March 30 so my consecration day will be May 1, St. Joseph the Worker, feast day.
 
I got the book over a month ago and recently finished the consecration to St. Joseph.

Father Donald Calloway’s book helped me learn a lot more about St. Joseph.
 
RN69 said:
@MarthaSo Looked it up and Canon Law #904 states that daily celebration of the Mass is earnestly recommended but avoids requiring priests to say the Mass every day. There are several reasons mentioned why it is worded that way.
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Correct. While highly recommended, priests are not required to celebrate Mass daily.

However, a parish pastor is required to have a Mass for the people of his parish on Sundays at the very least (or arrange for another priest to do so, if needed).
 
I’ve beefed up my chanting of the LOTH to help kill time more effectively, and to more effectively pray for the needs of the Church:
  1. Saying the other two minor hours;
  2. Praying the Office of Readings with two nocturnes on regular days, and three on Sundays and solemnities. The latter is not in the rubrics in the LOTH books but the Vatican has issued rubrics to do the OOR in that manner for religious communities who want a meatier Office. It’s in Notitiae 89, a liturgical bulletin put out by the Vatican. Essentially you pray the psalms of weeks I and III in those weeks (psalms of week I for the first Nocturne, those of week II for the second). Similarly, the psalms of weeks II and IV in those weeks. This morning being a solemnity, the Office too 45 minutes.
 
I Pray my Rosary daily by candlelight…
Read my St Joseph Sunday missal…
Read and meditate on the readings in “Word Among Us”…
Read and meditate the Bible…

Feeling “low” and occasionally hum the following song…

Shepherd me, O God, beyond my wants,
beyond my fears, from death into life.

God is my shepherd, so nothing I shall want,
I rest in the meadows of faithfulness and love,
I walk by the quiet waters of peace.

Gently you raise me and heal my weary soul,
you lead me by pathways of righteousness and truth,
my spirit shall sing the music of your Name.

Though I should wander the valley of death,
I fear no evil, for you are at my side,
your rod and your staff, my comfort and my hope.

You have set me a banquet of love in the face of hatred,
crowning me with love beyond my pow’r to hold.
Surely your kindness and mercy follow me all the days of my life;
I will dwell in the house of my God forevermore.
 
Tonight I had a virtual meetup with some ladies from my parish’s Lenten small groups. It was great to be able to join and share together. We even made sure there was a candle, music, and crucifix present. I’ve been keeping up with daily prayer and watching Mass, but missed bible study in a social setting. We are going to meet as the group normally would weekly.
 
All masses and in church functions are closed (where I live in NY). I have been watching online mass almost every day and am so grateful to be able to see the celebration, hear a homily and make a Spiritual Communion. I try to make time for a daily online Eucharistic Adoration, 15- 20minutes, and use St Alphonsus Liguori’s ‘Visits to the Blessed Sacrament and Our Lady’ as a devotional guide. I’m trying to focus on being blessed with so many online resources to get through this time. God is always providing for us!
 
Thank you for this response. It encouraged me.

I realize I’m the thread starter here and now after over 3 weeks of no receiving Communion I’m beginning to have a hard time with it.

What happened with me is once the quarantine began Mass was suspended until April 3 (about 3 weeks). I thought no problem, I can easily do that. I felt I had a lot of Eucharistic power in my reserve, having gone to Mass almost daily in the past 3-4 months. Then I got excited when many of the local parishes started streaming, which was around the time I began this thread. Since then, I have been participating in the online Mass every day and making the Spiritual Communion. I always pray the Spiritual Communion on the days I don’t go to Mass normally. While this tided me over, maybe it’s because it’s been over 21 days (the habit timeline as many say) or because it’s past the original date, or I just miss receiving so much…

Here in our diocese, many churches are open for prayer and many still have Confession. I’m very glad I went at the beginning of Lent, before the lockdown. I don’t understand why they are allowing Confession as I would think that would be dangerous with the virus. Anyway, I went to the parish church to pray twice so far, the second time was the other day and while it was good to at least be before a Tabernacle, after I left, I felt a bit deprived. I’ve only gone to a few Masses without going to Communion (never mind why) and to me, it was terrible. It was like being really hungry and going to your favorite restaurant and not being allowed to eat! I felt a bit like that the other day. Now with the state lock down being another 3 weeks, and sounds like the whole USA til at least April 30, this could be a long time yet.

What is encouraging me the most now is knowing whenever this is over I WILL be returning to Mass receiving the Eucharist. It also helps me knowing this is happening to nearly every lay Catholic and now I’m even more interested to hear what others are doing and how you are coping with this.

Thank you very much!
HA
 
I’ve been able to catch the Sunday Mass on the local EWTN affiliate, and the televised Mass offered in a neighboring Diocese. A close relative, who has cable service, catches Stations of The Cross by our local bishop.
 
Check if your local parish or diocese has purchased access to https://formed.org/. It is really good.

There has also been a couple of free online catholic conferences. This one is tomorrow.

The 17th annual Ignited By Truth Conference will be streamed online on April 18, 2020, 10am-5pm EST!

Speakers: Fr. Michael Gaitley, Fr. Donald Calloway, Fr. Chris Alar, Matthew Leonard, Jesse Romero, and Dr. John Bergsma.

IBT 2020 Virtual Catholic Conference - Free Premiere Event

 
I’ve found that if you know the right people or are able to help with streaming that Mass is available to the laity. Now I just need to know the right person or find a parish that needs help with video.
 
Redd_Jackal said:
I’ve been able to catch the Sunday Mass on the local EWTN affiliate, and the televised Mass offered in a neighboring Diocese. A close relative, who has cable service, catches Stations of The Cross by our local bishop.
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I as well listen to the Sunday Mass on the local EWTN radio affiliate.

I haven’t gone to Mass lately either because of the situation.

But I keep thinking about something my father taught me (that his father taught him).

God isn’t just in a church. God is everywhere.
 
Taking into consideration the stages of reopening,I don’t imagine there will be public Mass attendance for a very long time.
Logistically speaking,my parish holds 1200 per Mass.There are 5 Masses per weekend. We have four priests so the only way I foresee see it working is having three or four Masses simultaneously at least three times per Sunday,in order to achieve the social distancing rules.😳🙁
 
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