Father Mike's Message - 06/26/2022

Dear Parishioners,

Many, many thanks to all who participated in our Corpus Christi Procession last Sunday and to all who helped with details and arrangements.  What a wonderful way for our parish families of Our Lady of Lourdes and St. Francis Borgia who make up the Catholic Family in the City of Washington, to show our faith and belief in the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.  The procession was one way we can outwardly show the faith we hold so dear.  Let’s continue to show it forth in the way we live and in how we treat those around us.
 
We had a meeting with our Liturgy Committee this past week and discussed several items.  First, we have decided to wait on offering Communion under both species at this time.  Again, we would welcome any comments from you about this as we discern when to begin that practice again.  While distributing Communion under both species expresses the fullness of the symbol of Holy Communion, reception of the Body alone (or the Blood alone for that matter) is still receiving the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Christ.  So there’s no necessity to distribute the Blood of Christ, but it lends to experiencing the fullness of the symbol.  This gift of the Eucharist, the Real Presence of Jesus Christ, is a great gift that we as Catholics are blessed to share.  Let’s pray that all of us grow in appreciation of this gift as we partake of the Body of Christ and live as the Body of Christ, which is the mission of the Church.
 
At our meeting we also discussed the importance of hosting an evening of renewal for our Liturgical Ministers and those who might be interested in serving in the capacity of a Lector, Eucharistic Minister, or Usher/Greeter.  We will host these gatherings on Monday, July 11th and Tuesday, July 19th at 7:00 p.m.  Each evening will include some time for prayer, a review of procedures, and an opportunity for questions followed by some time for fellowship.  If you are involved in a Liturgical ministry or want to be, please plan to attend one of these evenings.
 
Since the beginning of the lockdown phase of the pandemic, we have had the practice of live streaming our Masses.  I learned recently that we have to file special reports about the music and songs we use for these Masses. These reports have caused extra work for our staff and an extra expense for our parish.  We decided that, effective the first weekend in July, we will live stream 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. Masses on Sundays.  We will continue to live stream the weekday Masses.  As a reminder, our live streamed Masses are recorded and are available on our website and on our YouTube channel for those who want to watch at a later time.  Thank you for your understanding of this.
 
Please see an important letter from Bill Gegg in thw bulletin this weekend in which he is asking for folks to consider taking on a role of organizing the KC Roundtable that has helped so many people in our parish. If you would like to discuss, please feel free to contact me.

Have a great week! Thanks for all you do.

Fr. Mike Boehm