St. Gregory Barbarigo 

    Happy Easter! Happy Easter! Today we celebrate the reality that our Lord Jesus Christ, after dying on the cross and being in the tomb on Friday, Saturday and into Sunday morning, physically rose from the dead and defeated death.  Jesus who was dead, was alive again, and he still lives even now. This is the day we have prepared for throughout Lent and which we celebrate during the Easter Season, but what’s more, this is a reality we experience every Sunday when we come together to celebrate the Mass. Though, keep in mind, Easter is not an isolated solemnity, but rather it comes as the apex of the Holy Triduum which includes Holy Thursday, Good Friday and the Easter Vigil. Central to the message of Easter is hope, hope for eternal life and the hope that Christ brings us every day. Pope Francis, periodically uses the phrase: “horizon of hope” reminding us that things can always change for the better.
    With the celebration of Easter -- you are reminded that – in Catholic World – we have an obligation to attend Sunday Mass.  Where does that obligation come from?  Well the short answer is from God as he commanded in the Third Commandment – Keep Holy The Sabbath.   And what is the most fundamental way of keeping holy the Sabbath? by worshiping God who made the Sabbath and created each of us.  To help ensure there is no confusion, active participation at Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation is the third precept of the Faith.   Are there exceptions? Of course.  If there is a blizzard and you can’t get to Mass or if you are stuck at home with the flu, or if there is a global pandemic which cancels public Masses.  Well in June, we were permitted to have public Mass again, and sure enough we have a good number of people at daily Mass and Sunday Mass, but we are still missing some of our parishioners.  And keep in mind – presently there is no dispensation from attending Sunday Mass, though of course if you have some kind of underlying health condition which makes you particularly susceptible to the dangers of covid 19, then it is reasonable to stay at home and participate on line or on TV.  But if you are healthy and not part of the vulnerable population – that obligation to Sunday Mass is still real.  So if you have been skipping, it’s time to come back.