St. John the Evangelist Catholic Community

Update on 3^rd April 2020 about the Holy Week Celebrations

Dear Parishioners

Greetings from SJE!

Julian of Norwich had a lovely way of expressing her sentiments of prayer as a deep longing. The Lord whispered to her, “Behold, I am the Ground of thy Beseeching.” Longing for God is something that is put into our hearts by God himself. He infects us with the desire for God more so now as we enter into the holiest moments of the liturgical year. Holy Week is the highest point of our Liturgical Year and yet we are unable to gather to worship as a community due to the peaking of the Covid-19 right around this time of the year. 

Despite this “new normal” of living a ‘socially-distanced’ life we have been blessed to dwell on the positive aspects of life where a new strain of humanity is emerging, a humanity that longs even more for God, a humanity that is caring and reaching out, a humanity that has realized deep in its heart that what affects one, affects us all. It is the very core message of the drama of Salvation. Adam’s sin has infected us with the perennial tendency to be selfish while Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross has afforded us salvation. 

Please know that I am deeply pained and immensely hurt not to be able to gather you all for these faith- anchoring celebrations of the Triduum. This is a time for choosing hope over despair. “The time for fear is over. Now is the time for hope.”

Let us be people of hope. Look to the brighter side of our faith. In the present situation the hope afforded to us is that we can still find ways to pray. People are becoming creative in finding new ways to pray just as many are finding new ways to beat the boredom of “staying home,” by dancing, singing, gardening, cooking, and doing art work.” I invite you to share with us your creative ways of praying as a family. Please share a photo or video (one minute and under) that others can see and be inspired. You can email them to Jim, our Director of Communication at [email protected] by April 12th. (Easter Sunday). This program is called “Inspire to Pray.”  

Due to the extension of the ‘stay at home’ orders to slow the spread of Covid-19, we will still be livestreaming our 11 a.m. Sunday Mass at our website at stjohnviera.org. For the Triduum celebrations we are all invited to join our Bishop John Noonan as his Masses will be livestreamed from St. James Cathedral in Orlando. We will make this available to you at our website. You don’t have to go anywhere other than our own website at stjohnviera.org. 

The Following are timings for the Holy Week Celebrations: 

Palm Sunday, 5^th April 2020 Mass at 11 a.m. from St. John’s. It will be followed by an hour of Adoration and Benediction. 

Wednesday 8^th April 2020 at 6:30 p.m. for the Chrism Mass from St. James Cathedral, Orlando. 

Holy Thursday, 9^th April 2020 for the Mass of the Lord’s supper at 7:00 p.m. from St. James Cathedral, Orlando.  We will also have Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament livestreamed from St John’s Church from 9 p.m. to 12 midnight.

Good Friday, 10^th April 2020 for the Passion of our Lord at 3:00 p.m. from St. James Cathedral, Orlando.  We will livestream the Stations of the Cross from St. John’s Church at 6 p.m. on Good Friday. 

Holy Saturday, 11^th April 2020 at 8:00 p.m. for the Easter Vigil from St. James Cathedral, Orlando.

Easter Sunday, 12^th April 2020 at 11 a.m. from St. John’s. 

I will be back with you after the Easter Celebrations. Meanwhile know of my prayers for you as you join our Lord Jesus in these days of trepidation and fear only to live as people of hope in the power of the Resurrection. 

Special thanks to you for continuing to support our parish through online giving or mailing in the envelops or dropping them off at the parish. Your love shines forth!

Be safe and healthy!

With love

Fr. John

We at St. John’s want to know how you pray during this Quarantine!
Send us a photo or video 1 minute or less of how you pray and we will include it in a video called “Inspire to Pray”, inspiring others to pray at home in new and unique ways!

Email your photo or video to us at [email protected]
by April 12th. (Easter Sunday)