Dear Brothers and Sisters,
As of July 1, all capacity restrictions for public Mass have been lifted. This is consistent with Phase 3 of “Forward Virginia,” Gov. Ralph Northam's phased approach for easing public health restrictions associated with slowing the spread of COVID-19. Bishop Burbidge has maintained the dispensation from attending Sunday Mass and Holy Days of Obligation throughout the Diocese until further notice for those who are 65 years or older, or who have health issues that prevent them from attending in person.
Please respect the Bishop’s expectations as posted, indicating that masks are to be worn, physical distancing (6 feet apart, unless immediate family) is to be maintained, and anyone who is experiencing COVID symptoms or has been exposed to someone who has COVID should return home. Our ushers and volunteers perform regular sanitation of the doors and pews after each Sunday Mass (including the 5 PM Vigil). We also print out worship aids for music and liturgy for one-time use.
We pray this information gives you peace of mind to return as a community to worship the Lord. We continue to pray that God will bring us through this pandemic soon. If you do arrive to church after Mass has begun, please consider sitting in the balcony or the parish hall, since some people will have already established their physical distance in the church. (There is usually a lot of opportunity to maintain physical distance in the parish hall; you can always request one of the ushers to have myself or one of the Ministers of Holy Communion bring you the Eucharist in the hall.)
Our Vacation Bible School, led by Kelly Bennett, and a team of youth will be held from Sunday, July 26 to Thursday, July 30, from 6:00 PM - 8:30 PM. You’re invited to come and experience God’s Word in Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition. One memorable Bible Point and one key aspect of Sacred Tradition will be reinforced throughout the stations each day making these key points easy to apply long after VBS is over. Pre-register online or if you wish to support VBS, pick up a yellow ticket on the crossing sign in the vestibule, sign the back and include your donation. We can collect “tickets” in the office or during the basket collections during Mass.
Epiphany Catholic School is looking for people interested in several part-time positions:
- Resource teacher,
- Spanish teacher,
- Science teacher,
- Physical Education teacher,
- Bus Drivers (AM and PM).
If you are interested, please email your resume to : office@epiphanycatholicschool.org. The salary is negotiable, and the applicant must be VIRTUS – compliant (meeting diocesan requirements for child safety.) Please contact Mary Leslie at 540-825-9017 for more information.
The Tysons are hosting an ALTAR SERVER gathering on Saturday, July 25, at 6:30PM, for past, present, or future youth (grades 4 and older) who are or wish to be in our Altar Server group. Please RSVP to Randy and Angel at rktyson@comcast.net or tysonangel@comcast.net. There will be a barbecue, fun and fellowship! Come and join in this service ministry!
There are only three weeks left for registration for CCD. A reminder that the First Year Confirmation class is open to 6th graders. Please register online or come to the office.
Thank you to the Legion of Mary – both in English and Spanish – for arranging for the Brown Scapular Investiture and Blessing. We actually need to order more scapulars because there were so many people who wished to be enrolled. The scapular of the Blessed Virgin of Mount Carmel is a sign of our consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and a reminder of the life we are called to live as children of God.
Our new ministry schedule will be coming out by August 3rd. Please watch for emails from Ministry Scheduler Pro (MSP) for updating your preferences for serving at the Masses scheduled for August and September.
We are grateful to our parishioners who are able to continue to support the parish during this time as we still have all of our payroll expenses. Thanks to your generosity, we are up to about 50% of our usual income. If you can help us get closer to reaching our budget, it would help us very much.
Shalom,
Fr. Kevin