Diocese of Clonfert
November Remembrance of Our Dead 2020

On Sunday 1st November 2020 at 3pm from the Cathedral of St Brendan, Loughrea Bishop Michael will lead a service of Prayer to dedicate November as a month of prayer and remembrance for the dead and the bereaved. This will be live streamed on www.loughreacathedral.ie. Similar prayer services will be celebrated in local parish churches.

There is a long established tradition of writing lists of our dead and placing them near the altar in our churches. Envelopes for this purpose are available from your local church. All those listed will be remembered at Mass throughout the month of November.

At the beginning of November your local Priest will privately bless the graves in each cemetery of the Parish. During the month of November you are encouraged to visit the graves of loved ones.

The short service below may be prayed while visiting the grave of a love or if this is not possible in your own home.

On Thursday 12th November 2020 at 11am Bishop Michael will celebrate Mass for all the deceased Bishops and Priests of the Diocese of Clonfert at the Cathedral of St Brendan, Loughrea. Join on line at www.loughreacathedral.ie

Click to download

Covid-19
Level 5 – Guidance for Parishes
Effective from 22nd October 2020

Until further notice the following restrictions are in place.

(1) Churches will remain open for private prayer with appropriate cleaning, sanitising and social distancing.

(2) There is to be no public Celebration of Mass or other Religious Services. You are invited to join spiritually in Mass and other Religious Services from your home or by means of the parish radio, web-cam or through television and radio broadcasts.

(3) The Sacrament of Reconciliation, Sacrament of the Sick and the Sacrament of Baptism will be celebrated only in cases of grave necessity. All necessary safety precautions are to apply. Please discuss with your local priest over the phone.

(4) Funerals should be conducted in accordance with the safety guidance in “Nothing can Separate us from the Love of God” with a maximum of 25 mourners present.

(5) The Sacrament of Marriage should be celebrated in accordance with the safety guidance in “Nothing can Separate us from the Love of God” with a maximum of 25 guests present.

(6) All gatherings for parish related activities are to be moved on-line.

(7) It is advisable that Parish News Letters continue.

(8) An appropriate means for people to return their donation envelopes will be made available locally. Parishioners may also wish to donate to their parish using the online donation facility on the Clonfert Diocesan Website.

Please continue to pray for our medical staff and front-line workers, our political leaders and our scientists at this time. Please keep safe and help keep each other safe. St Brendan, Pray for us!, Our Lady of Clonfert, Pray for us!

Nothing Can Separate Us From The Love of God: Guidance for a return to the Public Pastoral Life of the Church in the Tuam Ecclesiastical Province

TRAINING RESOURCES

1. What to expect when we return to Church - https://youtu.be/jw94raL2r48

2. Covid-19 Church Stewarding - https://youtu.be/gAyLAm4lry4

3. Covid-19 Church Cleaning - https://youtu.be/QJbb-wGsmCU

4. Covid-19 Use of Personal Protective Equipment - https://youtu.be/neTgR6_6CW0

5. Covid-19 Hand Hygiene, Respiratory Etiquette and Physical Distancing - https://youtu.be/ruPyJNMHYL0

6. Covid-19 Communications and Signage - https://youtu.be/02Um0hEAkmM

7. Covid-19 Distribution of Holy Communion - https://youtu.be/FnJrgo60J50

"We are with you”

The Diocese of Clonfert has launched “We are with you”: a prayer initiative for the deceased and their families in these difficult times.

As participation in the funeral liturgy of the Church is limited, we would like to pray in a special way for your loved one who has died and for your family.

As you are preparing a loved one’s funeral, Bishop Michael invites you to enrol their name in the Clonfert Diocesan Prayer of Remembrance for the Dead.

This is for funerals that take place in the Diocese of Clonfert and can be arranged through the Priest or the Funeral Director.

During the time of the funeral one of our local religious communities of sisters and groups of priests from the Diocese will pray privately the formal Prayer of the Church for your loved one and for your family. In the following weeks they will continue to remember you in their prayers and we let you know that they have done so.

The Clonfert Diocesan Prayer of Remembrance will be prayed locally by

• The Carmelite Sisters
• The Sisters of Mercy
• The Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood
• Groups of Priests from the Diocese of Clonfert