IMPORTANT INFORMATION & UPDATES

Message from Father Broheimer – March 30, 2020

The Holy See is granting special Plenary Indulgences for the following groups of people. This is a great mercy from the treasure house of the Church’s graces. Let us take full advantage of this blessing.

Those who suffer from Coronavirus or are ordered to be quarantined in hospitals or at home will obtain the gift of a Plenary Indulgence under these conditions:

• detached from sin

• unite spiritually to a broadcast of the Holy Mass or recite the Holy Rosary or meditate on the Way of the Cross or at least recite the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and a pray to the Blessed Virgin Mary

• offer their trial in a spirit of faith in God and charity towards others

• with the intentions to fulfill the usual conditions (sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion and prayer according to the Holy Father's intentions), as soon as possible.

Health care workers, family members and all those who in charity expose themselves to the risk of contagion by caring for those sick with Coronavirus:

• will obtain the same gift of the Plenary Indulgence under the same conditions listed above.

Those who pray for an end to the epidemic will be granted a Plenary Indulgence when they:

• are detached from sin

• implore from Almighty God the end of the pandemic, relief for those who are afflicted and eternal salvation for those whom the Lord has called to Himself

• by offering a visit to the Blessed Sacrament

• or Eucharistic adoration

• or reading the Holy Scriptures for at least half an hour

• or the recitation of the Holy Rosary

• or the pious exercise of the Way of the Cross

• or the recitation of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy

• with the intentions to fulfill the usual conditions (sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion and prayer according to the Holy Father's intentions), as soon as possible.

For those unable to receive the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick and of the Viaticum, the Church entrusts each and every one to divine Mercy by virtue of the communion of saints and granting the faithful a Plenary Indulgence on the point of death, provided that they are duly disposed and have recited a few prayers during their lifetime.

Message from Father Broheimer – March 27, 2020

Watch for the Mass for the Fifth Sunday of Lent to be posted on the website, the St. Peter YouTube page (see button below) and our Facebook page. It should be posted by 8 am on Sunday. We will have a PDF of the Mass texts for you to follow along which will be accessible through a link on the homepage.

I am praying for everyone daily. The Mass is being celebrated daily with all of you in mind at the altar. People can still make visits to the Church to pray if you would like. Tuesday through Friday from 9 am to 5:30 pm are the best time, but other arrangements can be made. Up to ten people at a time, of course.  Remember the Parish relies on your donations even while we aren't able to have the Mass publicly. You can mail them or use our PayPal account to give. For your convenience, our donation button is at the end (bottom) of the homepage.

During this time of suspension from the regular reception of the Sacraments, be sure to stay holy, commit to prayer, keep the Lord's Day, and let your heart grow with the desire to be rejoined with the Lord in his Sacraments.

The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

(Updated 3/25/2020)

Today the Church celebrates the Annunciation of the Lord, an event central to our salvation. At Christmas we celebrate the Nativity of our Lord, but today we celebrate the Incarnation of our Lord – two important mysteries very much linked and very much meant to be celebrated. In fact, the Church so wants us to celebrate today that our Lenten penances are suspended for a day.

This is a feast day in honor of our Lord first of all, but it is also a feast for Mary. We celebrate both of them and their love – the love of Jesus that he would strip himself of glory and be born of a woman, a man like is in all things but sin; the love of Mary: through her Immaculate Heart, she was so ready to say yes to God’s will for herself and for all of us. We are truly grateful for the love of God and the love of Mary today. When God’s love and man’s love come together, great things happen.

When Mary agreed to be the Mother of the Son of God, she didn’t know what that would entail. She had no idea of the blessings or the pain that would follow – but even without knowing, her perfect faith allowed her to say yes to God. She knew God’s will is the only will that mattered. Obedience to him would always lead to the best things for herself and her Son – even if it included suffering.

We must pray each day that we, too, can be as open to the will of God as Mary. His will is always the best way, filled with blessings, of course, but also filled with difficulty. Every Saint in Heaven knows this to be true. There is not one Saint who didn’t get there by following God’s will even if it meant great suffering because love and sacrifice always go together.

During this difficult time when we must completely rely on God’s graces, we must open ourselves to them in a different way than we are accustomed. Until we can assemble before the altar together again, we must make a concerted effort to pray all the more, to be devoted to charity, patience, and good works. Penance is an effective means to keep ourselves focused on God and holiness. This is a very different kind of Lent we are having, but it can still be a good one.

Celebrate today the best you can by giving thanks for all God has done for us in his Son and through the intercession of our Blessed Mother.

O God, who willed that your Word should take on the reality of human flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary, grant, we pray, that we, who confess our Redeemer to be God and man, may merit to become partakers even in his divine nature. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

All below dated 3/19/2020 or older.

Act of Consecration to St. Joseph

At Mass on March 19, I consecrated myself and all those under my spiritual care to St. Joseph, the Universal Patron of the Church. May he guard us well and lead us through this current time of difficulty. Feel free to join yourself to this great Saint through the following prayer:

O dearest St. Joseph, I consecrate myself to your honor and give myself to you, that you may always be my father, my protector and my guide in the way of salvation. Obtain for me a greater purity of heart and fervent love of the interior life. After your example may I do all my actions for the greater glory of God, in union with the Divine Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. O Blessed St. Joseph, pray for me, that I may share in the peace and joy of your holy death. Amen.

Visits to the Blessed Sacrament

It is possible to make visits to the St. Peter Church for prayer before the True Presence. We must not admit more than ten persons at a time in order to be in compliance with the prudent directives of our government. Because we cannot leave the church unlocked and unattended, please try to make your visits Tuesday through Friday during the hours of 10 am to 5 pm so that we may accommodate you. Please call the Parish Office 402-341-4560 when you arrive at the west wheelchair ramp door; we can “buzz” you in.

Make a Spiritual Communion

In this time when the Faithful are precluded from attending Mass, one can make what’s known as a spiritual communion. Benedict XVI recommended making
a spiritual communion in Sacramentum caritatis (The Sacrament of Charity).
He wrote, “Even in cases where it is not possible to receive sacramental communion, participation at Mass remains necessary, important, meaningful, and fruitful. In such circumstances it is beneficial to cultivate a desire for full union with Christ through the practice of spiritual communion, praised by Pope John Paul II and recommended by saints who were masters of the spiritual life.” In our current circumstance it’s not even a matter of being able to attend Mass and not receive the Eucharist but rather of not even being able to attend the Mass. The spiritual communion suggestion stands.

Here is one way to make a spiritual communion. We can do this each day, or each time we pass a church with the Blessed Sacrament therein.

1. Make an Act of Contrition

O My God, I am heartily sorry for having offended thee, and I detest all my sins because of thy just punishment. Most of all, because they offend thee, my God, who art all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of thy grace, to sin no more, and to avoid the near occasion of sin. Amen.

2. Make an Act of Spiritual Communion (this version is by St. Alphonsus de Liguori)

My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love you above all things, and I desire to receive you into my soul. Since I cannot at this moment receive you sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart.
I embrace you as if you were already there and unite myself wholly to you. Never permit me to be separated from you. Amen.

Confessions

For those for whom Confession is truly necessary and not simply for devotional purposes, an appointment can be made with me to meet at a door of church and then on to the confessional (which will be sanitized after each confession).
I believe it will not be possible to have announced open confession times as there will very likely be well more than ten people who will show up. Call the office for an appointment 402-341-4560. One need not leave their name.

Office Hours

For now the Parish Office remains open Tuesday through Friday 9 am to
5:30 pm, but please use prudence about whether a visit to the office is necessary. If a matter does not need to be in person to keep our social distancing please email secretary@stpeterchurch.net or call 402-341-4560.

Emergencies

I am available if there are Sacramental emergencies. You can call this number 402-346-9273. I am not currently making visits to homes for blessings or reasons other than emergencies. Following the guidelines of the County and the Archdiocese, for their own health we are not making visits to our home-bound parishioners, either. Because even in this time of “distancing” priests will be encountering many people for various reasons, we are being told even to limit our face-to-face meetings unless necessary.

First Communion

Right now we do not know if First Communion Masses will be possible on the weekend of April 25-26 as planned. These First Communion Masses are not yet cancelled, but we will have to wait and see if public liturgies are permitted by that time. Otherwise, I have in mind several contingencies for a later date. Please make sure your child’s baptismal certificate is turned in or mailed in.

Confirmation

Confirmation is currently scheduled for May 9. This Mass is not cancelled as of now. Please make sure to turn in or mail in your paperwork in preparation for this Sacrament: baptismal certificate, Saint report, letter to the Archbishop, and sponsor form.

Continued Donations

I have been asked by a few parishioners about what they should do about their regular donations. Just as your bills keep coming in despite any virus, so do ours at the parish. There are several options. First, you can set up your checking account online so that your bank sends a recurring donation or a one-time donation. You can use PayPal to donate to the parish. Many parishioners already use both of these methods for giving. You can also use the Post Office to mail your donation. Thank you for seeing to the needs of the parish while we’re in this difficult time.

A Message From Father Broheimer

The Archbishop of Omaha, George Lucas, is determined to cooperate fully in the interest of public health with the new COVID-19 limitations put in place by local, state, and national governments. To that end, effective immediately and for an undetermined length of time, all public Masses, communal celebrations of the Sacraments, and other public liturgies are indefinitely suspended.

In short order, I have heard from many parishioners about this suspension. It is shocking and upsetting news for many. I wonder if I might offer some reflection on this. We can all agree that this novel coronavirus is very contagious and only spreading because of person to person contact through the air and through touch. One way to avoid the spread is to employ the so-called “social distancing” and limiting the numbers of people in one place together.

I hope that it was not an easy decision for any bishop to suspend public liturgies, but it is within their authority to do so. I assume with prayer and prudence the Archbishop does not want our worship of God in our parishes to be the circumstance in which anyone becomes ill or for anyone, God forbid, die after becoming ill. This virus is very communicable; it is not only a possibility but a likelihood that it would be spread if we did not follow the instructions of the government on this. It is not unfaithful to say that just because we are in worship the laws of physics and biology are suspended. Also, the Church is not bowing before the government here; she is cooperating with prudence.

At the same time, it’s indisputable that the Sacraments are vital to our holiness and life lived in the Trinity and in union with one another. In an odd way, it’s enlightening to see the dread parishioners have at the thought of not being
able to receive the Sacraments for an indefinite period of time. I share the dread
with you.

Without downplaying anything of the infinite power of the Sacraments to save us, can we consider that perhaps we are so used to being able to receive them so easily these days as a remedy for our sins and weaknesses that we forget the effort which is incumbent upon us to work to remain holy between receptions of the Sacraments? Would I avoid sin or its near occasion with the same effort if I know I can receive confession the next day or if I know I can’t receive it for another three months? Would I not be more careful with my soul if I did not know when my next confession could be? This is not a hypothetical situation in many places in the world where a missionary priest is a rare sight, and it’s suddenly not hypothetical to us here and now.

Again, without detracting from the power of the Eucharist to save us and that it is a blessing and privilege to receive Him daily, do we not realize that one reception of the Most Blessed Sacrament is enough to make us Saints? And that as long as we do not mortally sin, the grace of our reception of the Body and Blood of our Lord persists within us?

Right now is an important time to guard and protect your holiness and that of your families. God’s grace is with you. Your priests are praying for you as they are saying their daily Masses in private. Work to keep the Faith. You still have the obligation to keep holy the Lord’s Day with prayer and thanksgiving. Be sure to make a spiritual communion (that is not a meaningless suggestion). Offer pleas for the intercession of our Mother. This is not a permanent situation, but in this time allow your heart to grow in love and desire for the Sacraments. How wonderful it will be when we’re together again at the Altar of the Lord to give thanks and supplication through the Most Holy Sacrifice.