Dear Parishioners,

The Commonwealth of PA, as of Monday, May 31, 2021, lifts all building sanitation, distancing, and capacity restrictions. Being sensitive to the needs of our parishioners and to help everyone ease back into normalcy, St. Albert the Great Parish will be amending some of its restrictions while lifting others in response to the new directives.

While the Archbishop of Philadelphia continues for the time being to dispense the obligation of the faithful to attend Mass, we strongly encourage those who are in good health to return to in-person Sunday Mass and the celebration of the Sacraments. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia will provide several weeks notice before the obligation to attend Mass is reinstated by the Archbishop.

Mass Schedule

• We will continue operating under our normal weekend and daily Mass schedules.
• The church chapel will reopen for Sunday Mass with live video feed of Mass.
• The 8 AM Daily Mass will now permanently remain in the main church.
• The sacristy will remain closed to the public. Only the clergy, lectors, and altar servers will be permitted in the sacristy at this time.
• The sacristy restroom will remain closed to the public.
• The 10 AM Sunday Mass will be permanently livestreamed moving forward for the benefit of our sick and homebound parishioners.

Saturday Confessions

• Tuesday evening confessions will be conducted in the chapel from 7:00 – 7:45 PM.
• Saturday confessions will be conducted in chapel from 4:00 – 4:45 PM.

Arriving for Mass

• All church entrances are open and accessible.
• The hand sanitizing dispensers will remain available at entrances of the church.

Wearing Masks

• Please note that the CDC guidelines on the use of face coverings and masks apply differently to those vaccinated and those unvaccinated.
• Those fully vaccinated are not required to wear masks/face coverings.
• Those not fully vaccinated and those unvaccinated are strongly encouraged to continue to wear a mask/face covering.
• In the spirit of Christian Charity, we ask all parishioners to be respectful of a person’s choice to wear or not to wear a face covering.
• There will be no mandates for vaccination of the faithful by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia or St. Albert the Great Parish out of respect for individual conscience.

Seating

• In accord with CDC Guidelines we are now operating at 100% seating capacity.

The Celebration of Mass

• The offertory procession will resume at the usual time during Mass.
• The weekly collection will resume at the usual time during Mass.
• The Sign of Peace will continue to be suspended until further notice.

Reception of Holy Communion

• Distribution of the Precious Blood continues to be suspended.
• Holy Communion may now be received in the hand or on the tongue.
• Ministers of Holy Communion will continue to sanitize prior to the distribution of Holy Communion.

Sanitation

• The spray sanitation of church following Sunday Mass will be discontinued May 31.
• Doors will continue to be sanitized by sacristans between Masses.

Should I Attend Mass?

While the Archbishop continues to dispense the obligation to attend Mass for the faithful at this time, it is anticipated that this dispensation will be lifted in the coming months, and that the obligation for the faithful to attend Sunday Mass will be reinstated. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia will give several weeks notice prior to reinstating the obligation to attend Sunday Mass. It is important to note that even when the obligation is restored, the faithful, as always, are excused legitimately from the obligation when they are seriously sick or caring for someone who is.

We remind the faithful that while the obligation to attend Mass on Sunday is dispensed, the obligation to keep the Lord's Day Holy is not. If you are unable to attend Sunday Mass, please make sufficient time for prayer or attend a virtual Mass.

Final Word

Again, we are eagerly looking forward to your return to worship the Lord with us.

Saint Albert the Great, pray for us!

Our Lady of Perpetual Help, pray for us!

• The Rectory Office is open for business.
• Weekend Masses will continue to follow our normal Sunday Mass schedule.
• The church chapel is now open for all weekend Masses with live feed of Sunday Mass.
• St. Albert Live Stream of Sunday Mass at 10 AM via Facebook Live
• 8 AM Daily Mass will be celebrated in the main church.
• Tuesday confessions will be held in the church chapel from 7:00 - 7:45 PM.
• Baptisms, Confessions, Marriages, and Funerals will take place as usual.
• The parish men's spirituality group will continue to meet virtually on Friday mornings for the remainder of the summer - for information contact Dennis M. Mueller.
• The parish women's spirituality group will continue to meet virtually on Thursday evenings - for information contact Christine Regan.
• The weekly parish Bible study will be offered virtually on Wednesday mornings from 9 - 10 AM for the remainder of the summer - for information contact Dennis M. Mueller.
• Communion calls to hospitals, nursing homes, and the homebound have resumed.

What is NOT available at this time?

• Friday morning adoration in the rectory chapel remains suspended until further notice.
• All meetings and events at the parish remain cancelled/suspended until further notice.
• The rectory chapel remains closed until further notice.
• All Spring CYO sports have been suspended.
• The Gymnasium remains closed to the public.

Virtual Masses

Daily Mass

• @ 8 AM on EWTN
• @ 8:15 AM with Bishop Barron
• @ 7 PM Daily Live Stream with Dominican Friars

Sunday Mass

• @ 8 AM on EWTN
• @ 11 AM with Archbishop Perez
• @ 12 PM on EWTN

Scripture Reflections

• St. Albert's Sunday Gospel Reflection
• Opening the Word on FORMED.org

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament

• 9 AM - 6 PM on EWTN
• Perpetual Adoration (24 Hours Daily) - Holy Spirit Sisters of Adoration

Virtual Devotions

• 12 PM Daily Live Stream Rosary with Domincan Friars
  
• Stations of the Cross with Video
• Stations of the Cross - Text Only
• Divine Mercy Chaplet - Text Only
• Divine Mercy Chaplet - with Video
• 9 AM Daily Live Stream Divine Mercy Chaplet @ Miraculous Medal Shrine
• 3 PM Daily Live Stream Divine Mercy Chaplet with Dominican Friars
• Glorious Mysteries with St. Albert the Great Pastoral Staff
• Sorrowful Mysteries St. Albert the Great Pastoral Staff
• Joyful Mysteries St. Albert the Great Pastoral Staff
• Luminous Mysteries St. Albert the Great Pastoral Staff

Virtual Formation

• FORMED.org Free Access. Register for Free! Already a subscriber? Login here.
• CIS Courses - Free Online Correspondence Courses through the KofC Catholic Information Services.

Saint Albert the Great Youtube Channel

• SATG Youtube Channel

O Mary,
You shine continuously on our journey
as a sign of salvation and hope.
We entrust ourselves to you, Health of the Sick,
who, at the foot of the cross,
were united with Jesus’ suffering,
and persevered in your faith.

“Protectress of the Roman people”,
you know our needs,
and we know that you will provide,
so that, as at Cana in Galilee,
joy and celebration may return
after this time of trial.

Help us, Mother of Divine Love,
to conform ourselves to the will of the Father
and to do what Jesus tells us.
For he took upon himself our suffering,
and burdened himself with our sorrows
to bring us, through the cross,
to the joy of the Resurrection.
Amen.

We fly to your protection,
O Holy Mother of God;
Do not despise our petitions
in our necessities,
but deliver us always
from every danger,
O Glorious and Blessed Virgin.

The most common occasion for making an Act of Spiritual Communion is when we cannot fulfill our obligation to attend Mass on a Sunday or Holy Day of Obligation, whether because of illness or bad weather, or some other reason outside of our control.

You can make an Acts of Spiritual Communion at any time and make multiple times a day—even on days when we have been able to receive the Eucharist.

Each Act of Spiritual Communion that we make increases our desire to receive sacramental Communion, and protects us until we can receive Holy Communion sacramentally again.

ACT OF SPIRITUAL COMMUNION (St. Alphonsus Ligouri)

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.

This 8-week course on Wednesdays via Zoom from 7:00 - 9:00 PM is for anyone with questions about the Church's teaching on contemporary issues, this course will aim to establish how best to understand and approach contemporary culture. Daniel A. Drain, Ph.D. (Cand.,), MTS, and Director of Religious Education at Our Lady of Guadalupe in Buckingham will be the presenter of this virtual series via Zoom. The cost of registration is $35 to cover the cost of participant materials. To register, email Daniel at ddrain6olguadalupe.org.

Meghan Cokeley, Director, Archdiocesan Office for the New Evangelization will be speaking on the topic of Safeguarding the Dignity of Man on Wednesday, June 16, 7:00-8:30 PM, at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, Philadelphia. Safeguarding the Dignity of Man will delve into the root of all of the Church’s moral teachings – from abortion to immigration to sexuality – a set of core, non-negotiable beliefs about what it means to be human. This talk will give an overview of these core beliefs and show how they form the foundation of our Catholic position on every social issue of our day. This will equip us to speak more eloquently about our faith and explain to others how the Catholic position on any issue fundamentally preserves and protects the great splendor of our humanity. For additional details and to RSVP, please visit cathedralphila.org. There is no charge to attend and parking will be available in the Cathedral lot. Click here for a flyer.

Tom Kuchler is joining our Pastoral Staff as the new Director of Parish Music. He is in his 5th year as the Director of Performing Arts at Conwell-Egan Catholic High School in Fairless Hills, PA, where he directs the school choirs, band, and theatre program, as well as coordinates music for school liturgies. Tom received his Bachelor of Music from the University of Delaware in 2016, and has also traveled to Aix-en-Provence, France, with the Delaware Choral Academy to study music and conducting. Tom has been involved in parish liturgical music his whole life, growing up in Presentation BVM Parish in Cheltenham, and most recently as a cantor and pianist at St. William Parish in Lawncrest. We welcome Tom to the parish community of St. Albert and look forward to him using his God-given gifts to lead us in praise and worship.

Archbishop Pérez has introduced a new Archdiocesan initiative, Nothing Compares to Being There. The purpose of this invitation is to help everyone recognize more profoundly the irreplaceable need to be in person for the celebration of Sunday Mass. Much ground work will be done over the course of the summer to prepare for this initiative at the parish and Archdiocesan level with an official kick-off slated for this September. Click here to read Archbishop Pérez's announcement.

Our Women’s Ministry returns with a 4-part series on the Blessed Mother every Thursday in May! Each session will provide opportunities for prayer, reflection, and discussion on Our Lady, highlighting meditations from Saint John Henry Newman. This program is free and will be held virtually on Zoom from 7-8pm on Zoom beginning Thursday, May 6. Contact Christine Regan 215-947-3500 or via email.

Registration for the 2021 - 2022 program year is now underway. The program is for students who will be entering into 1 through 7 grade this September 2021. Click here to register and submit payment online.

Our parish program has several learning options to choose from, including a traditional weekly program, a monthly family program, and a home-schooling option. Details about these options can be found on our CCD Page. We plan to hold in-person instruction this fall, and will not be offering a virtual option.

CCD Fees for 2021 – 2022 are as follows:

• $155.00 for one child
• $75.00 for each additional child
• Max per family: $305

If you have any questions, or require additional information, please contact Dennis M. Mueller at 215-947-3641 or via email.

Joseph’s People is a non-denominational and ecumenical non-profit group that serves unemployed and underemployed people. Since 1995, we have helped more than 5,000 people to recover from job loss. We have more than 1,800 members, with chapters in the Philadelphia area. We are run entirely by volunteers and have no paid staff. All meetings and events are FREE.

For additional details, please see the Joseph's People brochure.

The Archdiocesan Novena to Saint Joseph can be prayed in any setting, especially before or after Holy Mass but not as a part of the Mass, at parish meetings, in the classroom and in the family home. The praying of this Novena is to unite everyone in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia on the 19th of each month, from March through November 2021, in single petition of confident prayer to the Lord through the heavenly intercession of Saint Joseph. Please keep in mind the monthly Archdiocesan intentions.

How to celebrate the year of Saint Joseph:

• Meditate for at least 30 minutes on the Our Father
• Participate in a spiritual retreat of at least one day that includes meditation on Saint Joseph
• Perform a corporal or spiritual work of mercy
• Recite the holy rosary in families and between the husband and wife
• Entrust your work daily to the protection of Saint Joseph and to all believers who invoke with their prayers the intercession of the worker of Nazareth
• Pray the litany of Saint Joseph
• Pray any lawfully approved prayer or act of piety in honor of Saint Joseph on:
• The 19th day of every month
• Every Wednesday (a day dedicated to the memorial of the Saint according to the Latin tradition)

View Week One Video Here.
View Week Two Video Here.
View Week Three Video Here.
View Week Four Video class="link">Here.

The Catholic Charities Appeal brings hope where hope is needed most. From center city, to the suburbs, from the suburban communities to our most distressed communities, almost a million people each year receive hope through the Catholic Charities Appeal. When you support the Catholic Charities Appeal you are helping:

• Over 100 Catholic Social Services and Nutritional Development Services organizations and programs. Last year, 8.8 million meals were provided to those most in need.
• Over 100 students in the Schools of Special Education within the Archdiocese of Philadelphia receive tuition assistance and support.
• The 18 Programs and Offices that are providing Evangelization, Parish & Spiritual Life to our community.
• 158 Retired Priests who need care and support.
• 17 Mission Parishes in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia revitalize and sustain their parishes. This includes ministering to over 36,000 parishioners.

For more information or to make a donation visit the Catholic Charities Website.

Check out this week's selection of movies, audios, and formaton programs on FORMED.org. Don't have your free account yet? Sign up today!