St. Anthony of Padua

Under the new guidelines from the Governor's office, the Parish Staff will NOT be in the office.  Staff will be checking phone messages and emails from home.

PLEASE MAIL IN YOUR OFFERTORY ENVELOPES IF POSSIBLE:

St. Anthony Parish
PO Box 69
Westbrook, ME  04098

During this time of uncertainty, we will make every effort to update parishioners.

PLEASE SEE NEWS UNDER THE HOME MENU!

See Fr. Lou's homilies under the Mass Times menu.

A Letter from the Pastor - “Reopening the Churches”
 
Dear Brothers and Sisters:
 
It looks like we are soon going to be able to begin to reopen our churches.  This will be a limited to gatherings of 50 or less by State and Diocesan guidelines.  After consultation with our cluster staff, Pastoral Council, and the three leadership teams, I am communicating the plan that we have for at least the first week of June.  These will be our procedures for Week 1 because we’ll have to evaluate how things worked out the first week and then adjust our plan for Week 2 and beyond.  And, I expect that there will be a number of issues after the weekend of June 5-7 (notice we usually talk about a 2 day weekend, but now, let’s consider a 3 day weekend for Sunday Masses—more about that later).  We will offer “anticipated” Sunday Masses beginning Friday evening in all three parishes.
 
This is going to be a long letter, so let me put the proposed Mass schedule up front in case you don’t have the time to read further, but I urge you to read on so that you’ll know what to expect and prepare for a Mass that will look very different in these unprecedented times.
 
St. Anne
Friday 5pm
Saturday 8 am and 4 pm
Sunday 8 am, 9:30 am, and 11 am 
 
Our Lady of Sebago Chapel
The Summer 5 p.m. Sunday Mass will resume Father’s Day Weekend, June 21.
 
St. Anthony  (All Masses and Sunday Celebrations are in the Lower Hall Chapel)
Friday 5pm (Fr. Reggie)
Saturday 4 pm (Fr. Reggie)
Sunday:  8 am (Deacon led Sunday Celebration in Absence of a Priest)
Sunday: 9:30 Mass (Fr. Reggie)
Sunday 11 am (Deacon led Sunday Celebration in Absence of a Priest)
Sunday 4 pm (Deacon led Sunday Celebration in Absence of a Priest)
 
Our Lady of Perpetual Help
Friday 5 pm
Saturday: 8 am, 4 pm, and 5:30 pm
Sunday:  8 am, 10:15 am and 12:00 noon
 
Please attend only ONE of the above options, including the Friday evening and Saturday morning options which will “anticipate” the Sunday celebration.  So, if you attend Mass on a Friday evening, for example, please do not attend an additional Mass on Saturday or Sunday.
 
With this plan, we have moved from 7 weekend Masses to 19 worship opportunities in order to accommodate groups of 50 or less in compliance with the State of Maine directives.  We hope that will accommodate the initial response on the first weekend of opening.
 
That said, we cannot, by State law, permit more than 50 people into the church building at any one time.  How do we “flatten the curve?”  And, of course, there lies the challenge.  And here is where we will need to work together. 

• You may well be told that there is no room in the inn—but we’ll try to do our best to accommodate you at the next Mass or find some other creative solution. 
• If you are travelling at some distance, my advice is that you arrive early. 
• At least for the start, we are not implementing a “ticket” or “reservation” system, (because of a number of problems with such an approach—too numerous to mention) but will implement this if it becomes apparent that this is a better way to proceed.
• The doors of the church will be opened approximately 30 minutes before the first Mass as usual, but subsequent Masses and Sunday Celebrations may experience a delay because seating, surfaces, bathrooms, and doorway utilities will need to be sanitized before the next group can enter the building. 
• Thus, we may only be able to begin admitting parishioners 15 minutes before the 9:30 and 11:00 am Sunday Masses at St. Anne’s and Our Lady’s, at the 11:00 am Sunday Celebration at St. Anthony’s, and at the 5:30 p.m. Saturday Vigil Mass at Our Lady’s. 
• If standing in line outside of the church, please maintain proper social distancing.

• Those in the high-risk category, including the health-compromised and those over the age of 65 are advised (not required) to stay at home. 
• Many parishioners will not yet feel safe and comfortable returning to live Masses at this point in time, and this is perfectly understandable.  Come back when you are ready.

 
How will things look like?
 
Everybody MUST wear a mask or mouth and nose covering before entering the church and while in the church building, except when receiving communion.  No exceptions can be made.  The priest or deacon will not be wearing a mask during Mass to facilitate clear communications, and the reader will remove his or her mask while reading for the same reason.
 
Please use rest room only when absolutely necessary. 
 
In place of the offertory collection, a large basket will be placed at the exit door of the church where you will be able to deposit your offering if you are not already participating in the We-Share electronic offertory service.
 
There can be no after-Mass social gatherings for the time being.  We need to ask all parishioners to exit the building immediately following Mass to allow us the sanitize the facility before admitting parishioners for the next Mass.
 
At all three churches, there will only 46-47 individual chairs (since the ministers must be included in the total count of 50), each placed six feet away from surrounding chairs.  There will be no kneelers available (less surfaces to disinfect between Masses).  The Assembly will be asked to stand during the Eucharistic Prayer (those who experience difficulty standing may remain seated).  Spouses and families may choose to group their chairs closer together (please return the chairs to their original position after Mass).
 
There will be only one entrance and exit door at each church. 
Our Lady’s:  Use the front courtyard entrance.
St. Anne’s:  Use the front (Main Street) entrance.  The lower level doors will not be opened, and the entire lower level, including the staircase, will be closed.  Please reserve all front parking spots (including roadways) for those with disability plates/tags. 
St. Anthony’s:  Use the lower hall entrance.  The front doors of the church will not be opened, nor will the elevator be accessible.  Please reserve all lower parking lot spots for those with disability plates/tags.
Our Lady of Sebago Chapel:  Use the side door nearest to the take-out restaurant.  (The other doors will be propped open to facilitate ventilation, but will be taped).
 
Weekday Masses
 
We will resume the regular weekday Mass schedules at each of our churches beginning Monday, June 1, 2020.  The above procedures will apply to weekday Masses.  With the exception of the Friday 5 p.m. Mass at St. Anthony’s (considered to be a weekend Mass), we anticipate that parishioners can attend multiple weekday Masses.
 
So, that’s the plan.  Please keep in mind that we may need to make some adjustments to these procedures as time goes by, and you can expect to be informed of any changes in a timely fashion.
 
Wishing you all God’s blessings.  Stay safe.
 
Cordially,

 
Fr. Lou
 

Mass schedule (live stream Masses)
--Saturday – 4 pm at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Windham
--Sunday - 8 am at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Windham 

Masses St. Anne, Gorham in “drive-in style” Masses.  Parishioners will remain in their cars and tune into mass on their car radio. Click this link for details.  https://www.stannegorham.com/news/mass-from-balcony-st-anne

--Saturday – 5:30pm at St. Anne, Gorham (drive-in)
--Sunday – 9:30am at St. Anne, Gorham  (drive-in) 

 Daily masses will continue to be live-streamed at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Windham at 8am