St Rose of Lima Parish celebrated Mass in the church building this past weekend; it was the first time since the pandemic shut down the all parish activities on March 16.

The masses, which were in-person events as well as live streamed, had a limit of 100 persons as directed by both state and Diocesan mandates. An online reservation system was used to ensure compliance.

Families could sit together, and social distancing and face coverings were required by all who attended. Sanitization policies were also in place.

To prepare parishioners for the new procedures, Monsignor Robert Weiss, pastor, posted a video of a virtual walk-through in the church.

“This has been a challenging time for us as we slowly migrate back to masses in Church,” said Monsignor Weiss. “I made a plea to our parishioners for their patience and cooperation and they too have risen to the challenge. It has been amazing to see the response of so many who want to come back to worship as a community here on campus”.

Masses will continue in this fashion indefinitely. The reservation system will open on Mondays for the following weekend masses.

The town’s Catholic church hosted Parking Lot Masses in late May and the first weekend of June. Those have been discontinued.

The church’s Mass scheduled is currently as follows: Saturday 4 pm (in church and streaming); Sunday, 7:30 am (in church), 10:30 am (in church and streaming) and 5 pm (in church); and Monday through Friday, 6:45 am (in church and streaming) and 9 am (in church).

For additional information call 203-426-1014 or visit strosechurch.com.