** UPDATED WITH LINK TO REGISTER GUESTS **
Please only register immediate family, unless you indicated on the survey you also had named Godparents for First Communion (see below)
Please only register immediate family, unless you indicated on the survey you also had named Godparents for First Communion (see below)
First Communion during COVID-19
First Communion is a joy-filled day, but during the pandemic there are precautions that must be taken to keep everyone healthy. Some of these precautions will reduce the active roles that children have taken in our First Communion Masses in past years; others will make it more difficult for families to preserve memories of this day through photos. Travel restrictions, the limit on the capacity of our church during social distancing, and the need to protect our vulnerable elderly will all prevent grandparents and other relatives and friends from being able to attend.
First Communion is a joy-filled day, but during the pandemic there are precautions that must be taken to keep everyone healthy. Some of these precautions will reduce the active roles that children have taken in our First Communion Masses in past years; others will make it more difficult for families to preserve memories of this day through photos. Travel restrictions, the limit on the capacity of our church during social distancing, and the need to protect our vulnerable elderly will all prevent grandparents and other relatives and friends from being able to attend.
So that on First Communion day we can focus on the joy of receiving Jesus and coming to the table of the Lord, it is best that we prepare in advance for the efforts that this will require of all of us. Here are some facts you should know about some of the guidelines for how First Communion would look differently from what we had planned and discussed at the Parent Meeting last February.
Mass Times on Saturday, September 26
To limit the participation to the number of families per Mass that the church can currently hold, we request the following split for Masses on Saturday, September 26:
- 11 a.m. Mass available for Dwight cohort / Room 208 to receive as a group
- 2 p.m. intended for Rabinak cohort / Room 213 to receive as a group
If you would prefer the other Mass on the same day, or if you will need a different day altogether, please let Ms. Hohner know as soon as you can. There will be about 4 other First Communion Masses this year with our Religious Education students, and there may be small groups of students from Queen of Angels School who could receive together at one or more of these Masses, if you are concerned about your child not knowing anyone that day.
Preparations
- If your child’s First Communion clothes from last Spring no longer fit, feel free to have them wear something else church-appropriate. We just ask for no jeans, no shorts, and no hoodies. Dark sneakers are acceptable. Masks are necessary but do not need to be fancy.
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Felt banners do not need to be brought to church, since they cannot be sanitized after the Mass before you bring them home with you. A simple card with each child’s name will be placed at the end of pew and discarded after the Mass. We would not want to have to discard the banner! Banners can and should be a keepsake at home (even if they still bear the old date of May 2). Wooden dowels are being sent home this week to allow you to display your banner or take photos with it.
- Arrival times will be staggered to make sure that our ushers can seat everyone quickly.
- Families with last names A-L should arrive 30 minutes before Mass
- Families with last names M-Z should arrive 15 minutes before Mass
Who can attend the Mass?
- Immediate family (parents and siblings) who live with the First Communicant(s). Including the First Communicant(s), this number must be less than 7.
- Godparents for First Communion (only if your family has indicated through the survey that they have a tradition of choosing godparents for First Communion).
The Glascott, Kelesoglu, Kelly, Frank, Lujan, Muntaner Garcia, Parker, Reyes Parra, Strautz and Szabo families indicated in the survey that they had chosen godparents for First Communion. Only these families have permission to bring persons other than their immediate family members when their children receive Communion, because these numbers are reflected in the total number of persons allowed for each Mass.
Families must sign up their guests online in advance with the names, phone numbers (and/or emails), and relationships to the First Communicant(s). This is for possible contact-tracing in case someone was sick at the Mass. Registration closes automatically at 10 p.m. Friday, September 25.
We are working on possibilities for streaming the Mass via Facebook Live, so that grandparents and other relatives can participate from home in real time. There are many logistical considerations with doing this, especially since our streaming Masses each week have all been pre-recorded and did not involve filming any of the congregation receiving Communion. If you would like to help, especially with the 2 p.m. Mass streaming, please contact Beth Kraszewski.
Everyone attending must:
- Have their temperature checked when they arrive. This is required for child-centered events for schools and Religious Education programs.
- Use hand sanitizer at the door and before receiving Communion
- Wear a mask during the Mass, covering their nose and mouth
- Move through the church according to social distancing and the aisle markings
- Follow the directions of the ushers while being seated before Mass and while approaching to receive Communion
- Sit in the assigned seat and only take personal photos or videos from there during the Mass (no flash)
The priest celebrant of the Mass will use hand sanitizer and will wear a mask and a face shield when he is distributing Communion. The First Communicants can follow along with the Mass in their personal black or white Mass books they received at the Rite of Enrollment in February. There will be no printed worship aides or program booklets.
What cannot happen at the Mass:
- Families visiting one another at their pews before Mass begins. Once seated by the usher, please stay in your own pew.
- Singing by the congregation.
- Group or individual photos taken by a professional photographer.
- Using the banners that the children made last Spring,
- Procession of the children into the church at the beginning of Mass
- Children proclaiming the Readings or parts in the prayers of the Mass
- Children gathering on the steps of the sanctuary to listen to the Homily
- Children carrying flowers or the gifts of bread and wine to the altar
- Families remaining in the church after Mass to take photos