Entries for August 2020

Once again thanks to all who attended our Masses last weekend. The trauma of the pandemic has made all of us cautious about how safe we are outside our own homes, even at church. Our Mass attendance, though improving, is only about 30 percent of what it was before the crisis.  I hope our precautions helped you feel secure when you have come to our church or chapel. Given the reduction in instances of COVID-19 in our region, our re-opening committee has decided that we can make changes in them. We are increasing our seating in our church and chapel from every third...

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A survey has been placed on our St. Thomas website to get your input for our re-opening committee about what steps you believe are still needed to give you a sense of security coming to church for Sunday Mass and what changes we can make in our precautions. Please click here and fill it out as soon as possible but by Monday at noon at the latest. It is your safety we wish to protect and so it is your input that the Committee needs.  Please submit only one survey per person. Thank you in advance for participating in the survey and for your understanding and coo...

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On September 26, Long Island St. Vincent DePaul Conferences will come together “virtually” to celebrate the Annual Friends of the Poor Walk.  This is the only event on Long Island that draws attention to the issue of poverty in our communities.  See below for how you can join us in raising awareness and raising funds to help our neighbors in need.   How to Participate: Group walk with Conference members and others from parish and community Please remember all social distancing requirements - wear masks, have hand sanitizer availa...

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Once again thanks to all who attended our Masses last weekend or watched our taped Mass. I appreciate the willingness of all coming to our church or chapel to cooperate with the actions taken by our parish to keep us all safe.   This is a crisis with no by-standers. We have all been victimized by this disease, whether most seriously by loss of loved ones, severely compromised health or loss of livelihood or less so by restrictions on our daily routine. We, your priests and deacons, share this pain with you due to the limitations placed on our pastoral services. We ...

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Food Pantry: Thank you to all for continuing to support our Pantry with scheduled drop offs of donations and gift cards!  School Supplies: We are not collecting school supplies due to COVID.  Instead we are asking for donations of gift cards to Staples to help parents purchase the needed supplies for their children.  Any denomination is gratefully welcomed and can be brought to the Human Services Office or the Rectory. Communion to the Homebound: At this time, we are still not offering Communion to the homebound in an effort to keep all involved safe an...

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“Those we love don’t go away, They walk beside us every day. Unseen, unheard, but always near. Still loved, still missed and very dear” ~Unknown Our Bereavement Facilitators are keeping you in our prayers as you face the day to day journey through loss of your loved one. We are available to speak with you during your journey. Please call Human Services (516)538-7465 if you would like to speak with a member of the Bereavement Team. In the meantime, there are some online support programs available this Fall:   Catholic Health Services Long I...

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As we re-start our regular schedule of Baptisms, volunteers are needed in our Baptism ministry which involves teams of two volunteers each – often a married couple – being present at our baptismal ceremonies which occur about twice a month on Sundays at 1:30PM. We currently are limiting each session to 4 children and each family to 8 adults to ensure the health and safety of the families, volunteers and clergy. Baptisms will not take place at the font but at individual tables set up to provide as little contact between families as possible. Volunteers are n...

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Once again thanks to all who attended our Masses last weekend.  The trauma we experienced within the last few months makes us sensitive about being in gatherings for an extended period of time.  I hope our precautions help you feel secure.  This coming weekend, while we are still asking parishioners to register for Mass, seating will no longer be assigned.  Parishioners will seat themselves within the social distancing restrictions still in effect in our church and chapel.   The schedule for Sunday Masses for August 15-16 is the same as last w...

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Once again thanks to all who attended our Masses last weekend.  One of the unexpected and happy consequences of asking for parishioners to register for Mass is the opportunity to experience directly and personally your great desire to come to our church and chapel to celebrate together.  Thank you for that. I will give you this weekend’s schedule of Masses in a moment, but before I do that, I want to share with you information about another important aspect of the life of our parish. St. Thomas the Apostle School is preparing to offer full-time in-pers...

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