Just last week I extended our best wishes & prayers to Rose Pelley on the occasion of her 100th birthday. But I learned that she passed away on February 23rd, just a few days after her centenarian birthday which was February 19th. While it is sad to know that she is no longer with us, we rejoice that she is with the Lord whom she served so well. The family is planning on having a Mass of Christian Burial for her on June 23rd here at St. Leo the Great. We extend our sympathies to her family and continue to offer our prayers for her.               

    We celebrated a funeral Mass for Dennis Dina on Monday, February 28th. Dennis was married to his wife Mary for 46 years. Mary was by his side throughout these last years of his long illness and cared for him according to her promise to love him in sickness and in health. I am inspired by her example of faith and patience and loving kindness to him. Dennis was a gentle and kind man who was very devoted to his Catholic faith, attending Mass even when enjoying his camping trips. I was able to anoint him the day before he died and his wife Mary and I prayed the last rites as we called upon the saints to intercede for him in his last hours. Dennis served as an usher here at St. Leo’s and enjoyed time spent with his wife and brothers. May we all await the day when we are together again in the Lord’s kingdom.

We received word from the Bishop this past week that the “data indicates that the rates of infection of the COVID-19 virus are rapidly dropping in our area and will continue to drop. As a result, local health care systems are lessening operational restrictions.” Therefore the Bishop is revising the guidelines we have been following. Signs are being removed from the church regarding the request to wear masks (of course you are still welcomed to do so if you wish) and the mandate requiring masks to be worn during the distribution of Holy Communion is lifted. The distribution of the Precious Blood to the congregation remains prohibited until further notice. But once again, “Those parishioners who are ill, have significant health risk factors or care for someone who is immune-compromised or ill, as well as those who have significant fear or anxiety about contracting the coronavirus in a large group of persons are not obliged to attend Mass.” Along with the Bishop, I am very grateful for your patience, understanding, and support throughout the pandemic, which we all pray is coming to an end.                                                                          

     This will be the final call for anyone wishing to attend the Holy Land pilgrimage which is taking place from May 17th through the 25th. Many who have been there have made the comment to me that the price is very reasonable and keep assuring me that I and those with me will really benefit from the experience. We recently learned that Israel has also lifted the COVID-19 restrictions regarding testing, etc. so it appears the timing is working out great for us. More detailed information will be coming our way from the travel agency in terms of what we need to know, to pack, etc. Please feel free to reach out to me if you are interested in joining us. But do it quickly as the time is running out.                                     

     We hoped to have our “Little Purple Books” available for you to take home with you for the Lenten season but unfortunately they ran into publishing problems and will not be available this year. However, you can go to their website which is https://littlebooks.org/seasonal-books/lent and order one in Spanish, or click the link where you can download an app for your iPhone or Android phone with a yearly subscription of $9.99 (which I felt was well worth the nice meditations that are available for each day during the Advent/Christmas, Lent & Easter seasons, so really, 3 books for that price).             

     I look forward to seeing you at our Fish Fry’s (again, we are once again offering a dine-in option!) and to our Stations of the Cross (Fridays at 7pm).