First Communion and Confirmation [Update 15 December]

Update 15 December 2021

According to the Government of Ontario plan for reopening, we should see end of lockdown restrictions by the end of March. If that holds true, we will get through the backlog of First Communions and Confirmations by the end of the school year. Next year (September 2022) we will do First Communion for Grades 2 and 3, and Confirmations for Grades 7 and 8. It is frustrating for us that we are not able to proceed as we would like, but we never thought that the initial two-week lockdown would be extended to two years. We are eager to get going as soon as we are free to do so.

 First Communion

For children who completed the First Communion classes for 2019-2020 (now in Gr. 4), we are proceeding with First Communions  at the 9:00 am and 12:00 pm Sunday Masses, with two families at each Mass. See the post below (First Communoin 2020) for more details.

For children for 2020-2021 (now in Gr. 3) who did the home study with the books provided, we will complete the preparation and celebrate First Confession and First Communion Mass as soon as the restriction on in-person gatherings are lifted. See the post below (First Communion 2021) for more details.

For children now in Grade Two  (or older children who have not yet done their First Communion) we will begin the preparation as soon as the restrictions on in-person gatherings are lifted. We do not know when this will be, as these restrictions are imposed on us by the government. It now seems likely that we will begin only in September 2020, preparing both the Grade 2 and Grade 3 children for the Sacraments.

Confirmation

The situation for Confirmation is more complicated because, unlike First Communion, the Rite of Confirmation requires a dedicated Mass. We plan to catch up on Confirmations as soon as we can have in-person gatherings and full seating capacity in the Church. We are at the mercy of the government's lockdown policy.

First Communion 2020 [Update 15 December 2021]

Update 15 December 2021:

We will continue with First Communions at Sunday Mass through to the end of November, at either the 9:00 am or 12:00 pm Sunday Masses. We can accommodate two families at each Mass. We can only reserve one pew per family (6 persons) since our available seating is still limited due to 'social distancing' rules. Please email me at 'father.glass@gmail.com' to book a date/time.

Please bring your child for Confession before his/her First Communion.  Our regular Confession times are Tuesday between 6:00 pm and 6:45 pm, and Saturday between 4:00 and 4:45 pm.

Hopefully, the attendance restrictions will be lifted in the near future, and we can do one or two dedicated First Communion Masses for those children who have still not received the Sacrament.

Please read previous updates and the 'original post'  below for more information.

Update 11 October 2020: 

Your child did his/her 'First' Confession in January 2020, but we always do another Confession shortly before First Communion. Originally scheduled for the Grade 2 retreat, this was cancelled because of the shutdown, so now will be done individually.

Original post:

We have begun our First Holy Communions for children who began their preparation last year.

It is very important that you review the lessons from last year, and go over with your child the meaning of the Sacraments of Confession and the Eucharist. Make sure your child knows the basic prayers, and the format for Confessions and the Act of Contrition!

Because of Covid restrictions on seating capacity we cannot have dedicated First Communion Masses. However, we can accommodate two families per Mass at our regular Sunday Masses at 9:00 am and 12:00 noon. The maximum number of attendees per family is limited by the number that can sit together in the same pew (about 6 adults). As we see how things go, we may be able to increase these numbers. If you wish to proceed with your child's First Communion with these restrictions, please contact me at 'father.glass@gmail.com' with your preferred dates and times. Please write 'First Communion 2020' in the subject line. We do not have a sign-up system, so it will be first-come-first-served.

Also please note that your child will need to come to Confession prior to the date of First Communion. Our Confession times are currently Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6:00 to 6:50 pm; Saturday from 4:00 to 4:45 pm. I am also available before Mass on Sunday if you arrive at least 20 minutes early.

Hopefully, the lockdown restrictions will eventually be eased and we will able to increase our seating density. As soon as that happens we will proceed with the remainder of the First Communions at the 12:00 pm Sunday Masses with more children and larger family groups.

Thank you for your patience. This has been a trying time for all of us.

I will post updates on my 'Pastor's Desk' blog at 'stpaulsalliston.com'.

First Communion 2021 [Update 8 September 2021]

Update 15 December 2021

We are still in lockdown, so there is no change since the last update. 

The plan  is to have one in-person lesson before First Confession, and another in-person lesson (with rehearsal) before First Communion, with First Communion Masses following as soon as possible. 

Please make sure your children know the basic prayers; Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be, as well as the Act of Contrition, and the Format for Confession. 

Update 9 March 2021

If you have not picked up the second study book on First Communion (the first book was on First Reconciliation), It is available at the Church office.

We are still doing First Communions for the 2020 class, but we are hoping to do our 2021 First Communions in September or October, depending of the status of the lockdown. We would like to do at least one in-person class for the children before they receive the Sacrament. We will schedule First Confession prior to the date of First Communion.

We are hoping to have regular in-person classes for the 2021-2022 year, and any children who missed the classes this year are welcome to join us.

Family of Faith Update - Friday 25 September

Good news! Our Family of Faith renovation projects are now complete. Phase I was the renovation of the entrance plaza of St. Paul's Church. Phase II was the re-paving of St. Paul's Church parking lot. Phase III, now complete, was the painting of all the exterior woodwork at Immaculate Conception Church at a cost of $22,700. This work was labour-intensive and required the use of a bucket lift to reach the roof soffits and steeple. Immaculate Conception Church was built in 1885 (after the original 1855 Church burned down) and is an important part of our local heritage.

While the painters were on site at Immaculate Conception Church, we also had them repaint the barn at a cost of $4600.  The roof of the barn was replaced last year. These barn renovations are being paid for out of our Capital Upgrades donations.

Thank you to all who contributed to our Family of Faith campaign. Your generosity has enabled us to make some important renovations to our two Churches.

Update Friday 18 September

Nothing has changed since last update. We are in a holding pattern, waiting for Doug Ford to lift the onerous restrictions which prevent us from getting on with our normal parish activities.

Update on First Communion September 4

We are getting calls with regard to First Communions. Right now the government has imposed such strict restrictions on Church attendance that we cannot accommodate any extra guests at our Masses. If you are currently attending Mass you know how limited our seating capacity is. Currently, we have Sunday Mass at 9:00 am, 10:30 am and 12:00 noon. When the government allows us to increase attendance, we will keep the 9:00 and 10:30 Masses as regular Sunday Mass, and the 12:00 noon will be for First Communions, for as many Sundays as it takes. When this can start depends on Premier Doug Ford!

Update Tuesday 25 August

 Change in Sunday Mass times beginning Sunday, 30 August

Saturday 5:00 pm, Sunday 9:00 am, 10:30 am, 12:00 noon.

Weekday Mass times remain the same.

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 8:00 am and 7:00 pm
   (with Holy Hour and Confession 6:00 pm)
Friday: 12:10 pm.
Saturday: 9:00 am

Sacraments

We are doing Baptisms every Saturday at 2:00 pm. Single family and invited guests only.

We are doing Funerals with same restrictions as Sunday Mass.

First Communion and Confirmation are still on hold while we are still in partial lockdown. We will resume when we can accommodate a suitable number of families and guests.