Vol. 3, No. 13, Wednesday, April 8, 2020

Please note: T he Diocese of Tucson and St. Augustine Cathedral Parish offices are closed until further notice because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
While our offices are closed, Pastoral Center employees are checking email messages and voice mail hourly. When you call a Pastoral Center employee,  please leave a message with your phone number so your call can be returned. For the general delivery message box, dial 0.
 
Holy Week
At this time, we find ourselves poised to contemplate Holy Thursday, followed by the Triduum. These are the holiest of days in our faith; days that remind us of the sacrifices of Jesus that lead to His resurrection and the promise of victory over death.
 
The pandemic now affecting the world has perhaps helped us focus, very sharply, on the frailty of life. It
also increased our awareness for the need to concentrate on the gifts of the Spirit that bring us life, happiness and surety in the belief that Christ brings peace and comfort to us in these difficult times. 
 
Hopefully, as we reflect on our lives and look forward to Easter Sunday to celebrate the risen Christ, we also will reflect on the promises of Christ and how we must continue to believe in those promises  through our actions and in how we help one another deal with this pandemic.
 
Know that I am praying for all of us, for the recovery of the sick and for the end of this pandemic.  I have included in this Update a Holy Week reflection written by Archbishop John Wester of the Santa Fe Archdiocese, who also is the Metropolitan of our diocese, as another source to help us cope with the times we are experiencing.
 
 I invite you to join me for our livestream liturgies, including, of course, Easter Sunday.  Here is the schedule of liturgies to be livestreamed on my Facebook page at: Facebook.com/diocesetucson.org/
 
 
Holy Thursday, April 9, Mass of the Lord’s Supper, at 7 p.m. 

Good Friday Liturgy, April 10, at 3 p.m.

There will be no service on Holy Saturday.

Easter Sunday, April 12, 9 a.m., English 

Bilingual Easter Sunday Mass, April 12:  10:30 a.m. with  Fr. Gilbert Malu, Rector of St. Augustine Cathedral, presiding.
 
Parishioners also are encouraged to check with their local church to determine what on-line services will be available to them from their proper parish during Holy Week.
 
 
Here is Archbishop Wester’s reflection as published by Catholic News Service:
 
This is one of a series of pastoral and personal reflections on living in this time of pandemic . . . This is part of an occasional series of reflections CNS will have from some U.S. Catholic bishops.
 
The COVID-19 pandemic has not only deprived the faithful of holy Communion, but it also prevents them from gathering around the eucharistic table, thus also depriving them of the comfort of gathering with their fellow parishioners. Unlike the aftermath of the 9/11 tragedy, this crisis forces us to isolate ourselves, keeping the proper social distance. The sad fact of the matter is that we have no choice. We must respond prudently to the vagaries of the coronavirus.
 
For most of us, it may not be immediately clear how we are to experience Christ's presence without participating in the ancient, sacred rites of Holy Week and Easter. That is why this is a time for us to turn to the Lord, who will lead us to himself. In the midst of our confusion, uncertainty and fear he will guide us throughout Holy Week and into Easter, revealing his grace and love in new and unexpected ways as we gather with our loved ones, "sheltering in place."
 
The first step is to open our hearts in trust to the "God of More," who will not abandon us in this, our hour of need. Provide for quiet time in your home, either individually or as a family, and simply listen to what the Lord is speaking to you. Then, join in family prayers throughout Holy Week and throughout the Easter season. The readings of the day and other prayers can be found online through the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops website (www.usccb.org) and diocesan and parish websites.
 
Pray the rosary, the Stations of the Cross, the Divine Mercy chaplet. Read reflections on the passion, death and resurrection of the Lord, so many of which also can be found online. If you are not that computer literate, you can always call your parish priest or diocesan office for help.
 
Perform acts of charity around the house. Call an elderly relative or friend. No matter what you end up doing, the main point is to allow Christ to lead you through this holiest of weeks and beyond so that his love, mercy and compassion will be ever more present to you.
 
It is also important to remember that as we are confined to our homes, we are still very much united with the entire church, the body of Christ, through the communion of saints. Franciscan Friar Daniel P. Horan has recently written in the National Catholic Reporter that this doctrine "is an important tenet of our faith but one that few Christians regularly consider."
 
During this pandemic, when we are forced to isolate, we can remain united with each other through our baptism and through the work of the Holy Spirit. Paradoxically, by keeping apart we contribute to the well-being of the entire church and the whole human family: We are present to one another in our absence, we are united in our social distancing and we care for one another by staying home. This bond of love with Christ and each other cannot be broken by physical separation and in this case is even strengthened by the sacrifice of our remaining apart.
 
This Holy Week and for all we know, the entire Easter season, will be like no other we have known. It will be difficult, to say the least, not to gather around the altar of the one crucified in weakness and risen in glory. After all is said and done, we are called to be a people of faith. In this critical time as we struggle to understand our Lord's hand in the drastic measures that must be taken, Dominican Father Michael Demkovich has reminded me that we are gaining a deeper insight into the eucharistic fast, the abstinence from the church's celebration of the Eucharist, which is an invitation to an even deeper appreciation of the Eucharist itself.
 
We are being called to reflect on the Stripping of the Altar that happens after the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord's Supper. The absence of the eucharistic celebration all the way to the Easter Vigil is a sober time when we join our Lord in the tomb and no Mass is celebrated throughout the church. It is a time for each of us to grow in appreciation of the Lord's real presence in the Eucharist and his presence in the church, if even by its absence we keep vigil at the tomb. This is our Good Friday as we await the Easter promise.
 
Is there a moment in the drama of the Lord's passion and resurrection that speaks to our unique situation of "sheltering in place"? Perhaps it is when, on that first Easter, the disciples were isolated from others, cowering in grief and fear behind locked doors. The risen Lord came to them through those doors, with his Easter greeting of "Peace!"
 
May the light of Christ, which pierces the darkness, shine brightly in our homes and in our hearts, dispelling the fear of sickness and death. It is the light of Christ, risen from the dead, that makes home the holy place.
 
Remember your parishes!
Online donations can be made to any DOT parish at https://app.mobilecause.com/form/ZXM8yQ?vid=6kwx4
 
I reported the topic of parish financial need in my last Update. I cannot emphasize enough how critical it is for the welfare of our parishes that our diocese and faithful Catholics continue to support their faith homes right now.  Many of our parishes have little financial backup to weekly giving.  At the diocesan level, we are working on ways to provide support to parishes, but there are financial limitations within the Diocese as well. 
 
I remind all, that although our churches are closed, many continue to provide services such as Mass on Facebook, and of course, essential ministries.  Right now, please consider online donations to prevent these parishes from having to lay off their employees, who like many of you, are trying to continue to work from home.
 
Mass resources
Bishop Weisenburger continues posting videos of Mass on our website homepage at www.diocesetucson.org
If you would like to follow daily Masses, you can do so at many online or cable TV sites (see list below).
 - Catholic TV Mass in English and Spanish: https://www.watchthemass.com/ .
- Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception: https://www.nationalshrine.org/mass/
 - A listing of Masses with direct links to sites: https://www.catholicfaithnetwork.org/
Catholic Faith Network Masses.
Heart of the Nation
Santa Fe Communications
Online Mass:  https://www.heartofthenation.org/online-mass/sunday-mass#/
 
TV stations
Channel 58.1 : Sundays at 7:30 a.m.
Comcast: Channel 8, 7:30 a.m.
 
Parishes and pastors are providing online services for parishioners and viewers as well.
Those include the following:
 
- St. Elizabeth’s Tucson: seastucson.org/; or via the YouTube channel SEAS Fr. Lucero.
Meanwhile, there are parishes that are offering Masses online via the Facebook Live app. You can view Sunday Mass at the following parish pages:
 
- Corpus Christi Parish
Weekend Masses are posted on YouTube:   https://youtu.be/KxO4rhWGHQs
 
- Santa Catalina Parish: Website: http://www.santacatalinaparish.org;
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vejWrzc5evY
 
 
- Our Mother of Sorrows, Tucson: facebook.com/omosparishtucson/videos/
 
- Holy Angels, Globe (stations of the cross, adoration): facebook.com/globearizona.org/videos/
 
- St. Mark’s, Oro Valley: stmarkov.com/mass-streaming
 
- Father Jose Padilla, San Felipe de Jesus (Spanish): facebook.com/manolo.padilla1 
 
- Our Lady Queen of All Saints, Tucson (Spanish): facebook.com/olqoas
 
- St. Thomas More Catholic Student Center, Tucson: facebook.com/uacatholic; Mass and evening prayer, on the YouTube Channel at  youtube.com/user/uacatholic 
 
- St. Margaret Mary, Tucson: facebook.com/StMargaret-Mary-Alacoque-108044060828493/