Sign-Up for Mass: Please sign up now for this coming Sunday’s Mass. Click the “Mass Sign Up” button (on the home page of the parish website) each week to sign up. The link is refreshed weekly by Tuesday at noon. Please remember to sign up for each Sunday’s Mass by no later than Friday at noon. Our seating capacity in the church for the duration of the pandemic is 100 congregants per Mass, with five Mass options from which to choose. Please be sure to express your gratitude to our many volunteers serving at the church doors and in the aisles, who work for hours each Sunday so that we can have public celebrations of the Mass.
Parish Feast Day: Mark your calendars for August 22nd, the Octave Day of the Assumption, our parish feast day. The “Parish of Saint Mary” was officially named and established on the Octave Day of the Assumption, in the year of our Lord 1943, by Bishop Adrian of Nashville. We celebrate this event each year on Founders Day, and we won’t let a pandemic stop us this year! Preliminary planning is underway for an outdoor cookout on Saturday, August 22nd. We hope to find some creative way to include parishioners living in rest homes in the celebration. See future “Latest News” updates for details as these become available.
Sacrament of Confirmation: In an effort to avoid a possible “second wave” of the virus this winter, and in cooperation with modified procedures issued by Bishop Stika, we will likely celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation for parish children on Saturday, November 21st, the Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. We will finalize the date on Friday, after we hear results of a survey sent to parents of our fifth graders.
Parish Thrift Store: Our White Elephant Thrift Store serves the local community, and provides a little extra funding for parish charitable activities. Under the management of Michelle Scott, the store has grown considerably in its beneficial impact. The pandemic has altered the store’s operations considerably, but, in full cooperation with the Anderson County Health Department, the store is now open three days per week: Tuesdays and Thursdays from noon to 7 pm, and Saturdays from 10 am to 3 pm. At this time, two parishioners are running the store, and a third parishioner is the treasurer (reporting to our parish bookkeeper and the Parish Finance Council). There’s also a Facebook page which you might enjoy visiting. The store accepts both cash and bank cards.
Parking Lot Maintenance: Please be aware that some sections of the parking lot will be out of use for several days this summer, due to maintenance.
Saint Junípero Serra: The California missionary saint is in the news again. Was he friend or foe of the peoples of the west coast?