What Should the New Mass Schedule Be?

Dear Fellow Parishioners:

Next month I am going to ask you to indicate at what time you would prefer to come to Sunday Mass. Changing the Sunday Mass schedule is a serious matter for a parish so I would like to hear from as many of you as possible. There are three reasons why I believe we need to consider changing the Mass schedule.

One reason is that the current Mass schedule is designed to accommodate the Religious Education program. Previously, weekly catechetical classes were held on Sunday mornings. Due to the tremendous increase in the number of children attending classes and the congestion it was causing in the parking lot, we needed to move the program to other days of the week. The second reason for a modification is due to the changing demographics of the parish. As many of you remember from not too long ago, Cheverly was predominantly a Catholic neighborhood. Unfortunately that is no longer the case and we have fewer people attending Sunday Masses. One indicator of that is that we are having more difficulty recruiting a sufficient number of liturgical ministers to support five Masses. The third reason is that we are now a single priest parish. Since the announcement that Fr. Alex would be reassigned and a replacement was not available, I have been investigating the possibility of getting a priest to help periodically but that is not something I can rely on with any regularity.

Change is always hard. I have had to move six times in the past 18 years as a priest and each change has been difficult for me. While change is difficult, the positive side is that we may even establish a Mass schedule that’s even more convenient for you. Please see the sample survey that is in the bulletin and consider how you may wish to respond next month. I am looking forward to hearing from you.

Your brother,
Fr. Kevin C. Kennedy