Priority News
Spiritual Bouquet for our new
Coadjutor Bishop Louis Tylka
please “pledge” a special spiritual gift of prayers, sacrifices,
or acts of kindness/service in preparation for his ordination on July 23rd.
These gifts will be part of an “ad” under our parish name in the Catholic Post.
As we prepare to re-open our parish, many volunteers will be needed to ensure a safe return.
We are looking for people to help as greeters and ushers, and with cleaning between Masses, sacraments, and worship.
We are looking for volunteers:
- Over age 18 (high school under 18 may help with parental consent)
- Having no underlying health conditions
- Not experiencing any symptoms of illness
- Not having traveled internationally or to highly impacted parts of the United States
- Able and willing to:
- Attend mandatory training
- Follow all health & safety protocols/procedures (ie wearing a mask at all times)
- Understand & assume the risks coming into the church and gathering with others
If this describes you, to sign up or ask questions, email our Volunteer Leadership team at greeters@holytrinitybloomington.org.
I’m sure we will need such people for Historic St. Patrick as well, but I do not have contact information yet.
We just received word this afternoon Fr. Geoff Horton has been made Administrator of St. Patrick Church in Wapella and the chaplain at Central Catholic High School, along with continuing as the chaplain at the ISU Newman Center. Fr. Horton will no longer be assigned to Holy Trinity and Historic St. Patrick Parishes.
Fr Jeff Stirniman will remain Pastor of Holy Trinity and Historic St Patrick Parishes. It is assumed a new parochial vicar will not be assigned with him.
A word or two (or thirty) from Fr. Horton:
Coming home to Holy Trinity has been a great privilege, both seeing new faces and meeting up with old friends. As you can see from my list of assignments, I will still be close to town as well as in town quite often and I hope to see all of you!
And from Fr. Stirniman:
I wish to thank Fr. Horton for his three years of dedicated work to the ministries and parishioners of our shared three parishes of Holy Trinity, Historic St Patrick, and St Patrick, Wapella . . . as well as to the students of Corpus Christi Catholic School!
Please pray for both of us as we both venture into new ministerial assignments!
Pax Domini,
Fr Jeff Stirniman and Fr Geoff Horton
If you’ve seen the Catholic Post article about churches reopening on June 6 (and even if you haven’t), please be patient with us. Many details have to be attended to before we can open, and it is quite possible that we (and many other parishes) won’t be ready to open quite that quickly. Keep us and each other in your prayers, and offer special prayers for those who are doing the work to prepare us to open.
WARNING ABOUT RISK ASSUMED BY PARISHIONERS:
While our parish staffs will attempt to take appropriate precautions consistent with the advice of public health authorities, parishioners and guests should understand that they assume the risk of contracting COVID-19 anytime they enter a public space since such precautions do not eliminate the risk of infection.
Letter from Bishop Jenky, CSC
May 20, 2020
My dear brothers and sisters in the Risen Lord,
These past couple of months have been a truly extraordinary time. As the world struggled to come to terms with how best to respond to the pandemic, we have been unable to participate in the Mass and the Sacraments in the usual way. I know that this has been difficult for both our priests and the people they serve.
As many of you know, consistent with the Governor’s Executive Order, we have begun offering drive-in Masses in a number of our locations. While we are presently only opening our churches for funerals, weddings, and baptisms, we are planning for the day when we will resume weekday and Lord’s Day Masses. It will require many adjustments on the part of everyone, clergy and laity alike.
Please keep in mind that while our parish staffs will attempt to take appropriate precautions consistent with the advice of public health authorities, parishioners and guests should understand that they assume the risk of contracting COVID-19 anytime they enter a public space since such precautions do not eliminate the risk of infection.
I am immensely grateful for the work that has been done by the Archdiocese of Chicago, in conjunction with State and local leaders, to begin the formulating of a plan for the reopening of our churches. The Governor has pointed out that the spread of the deadly virus varies from one region of Illinois to another, and his plan for loosening the restrictions currently in place reflects this reality.
In the Diocese of Peoria, we have modeled our plan after the one developed for use in the Archdiocese of Chicago and have made adaptations that correspond to our region. In all cases, the requirements of the appropriate authorities are to be observed. I particularly wish to acknowledge and thank our partners at OSF HEALTHCARE who have made their Infectious Disease Team available to us and who have given their endorsement to this plan.
Please bear in mind that as the situation changes, from one county to the next, modifications may be necessary to the plan. We are working diligently to open our churches and provide you with the Sacraments in a way that reflects our love for God and our responsibilities to one another. As I have said before, we are striving at all times to conduct ourselves as devout believers and responsible citizens. We are all in this together.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Most Reverend Daniel R. Jenky, C.S.C.