FROM THE RECTOR: CLOSED UNTIL JULY

When Mass was over this morning, Friday, May 1, 2020, and I checked my phone, my heart sank when I saw the subject line of an e-mail from the Episcopal Diocese of New York. It read, “Suspension of Public Worship Extended to July 1.” You can read the statement from Bishop Andrew Dietsche using this link to the diocesan website. I assumed that there would be an extension beyond May 17. I was hoping that, for now, the next extension would only be until the end of this month. Though there are good signs that COVID-19 is slowly receding, great economic hardship for tens of millions of people is on the rise. Finding a balance between these two imperatives has not been easy.

Saint Mary’s closed on Sunday morning, March 15. In the course of that week we worked hard to figure out how to remain open. We had discovered that forty individuals, or thirty individuals and ten couples, could safely sit in the nave of the church. But the crisis had arrived, and those plans had to be shelved. In the early hours of that Sunday morning I lay awake and realized that closing the church to public worship was the right thing to do, and that’s what we did.

I’m very aware that our church home is not being cleaned daily. Yes, we’re getting the garbage out. But Friday, March 13, was the last day our sextons worked. Dust and dirt accumulate even when the building is closed. There are many things that must wait till our doors open and the members of the staff return. Still, there is much to do here, and we try to get it done. In addition to daily worship, Fr. Jay Smith and I are doing a lot of different things each day to keep the parish going. All packages and mail for all of the residents comes to the 145 West Forty-sixth Street doorway. It means that the buzzers of those who live there get rung a lot. We try to keep up with our e-mails and our texts, to stay in touch with our parishioners and to respond to those who are reaching out to us. In all this, we’ve been assisted by Father Pace, Father Matthew Jacobson, Father Peter Powell, and members of the board of trustees. We know that many of you are doing that good work as well.

I’ve got a pretty good weekly routine for scanning bills for the bookkeeper, printing checks after she puts them into the system, and getting them in the mail. We don’t have a professional set-up for live-streaming our daily Eucharists and Sunday Evening Prayer & Sung Benediction. (Thanks again to Father Carl Turner and Saint Thomas Church for a box of quick-light charcoal. The gift will be repaid!) Fortunately, Br. Damien Joseph SSF knows a great deal about all that. This week Damien worked on lighting in the Lady Chapel and managed to solve a couple of problems that have improved the live-streams. Brother Thomas continues to raise money for our clothing ministry—we are committed to continuing that work as soon as our doors open again. Thomas also works with a couple of non-profit organizations for which he serves as a board member. Both Damien and Thomas also have work they must do for their religious order, the Society of Saint Francis. They do some of that on Thursdays, their community day. None of us is bored and we all manage to stay busy.

On Wednesday night, Jay, José Vidal, and I were privileged to be invited to a Zoom farewell for Father Jim Pace and his partner Quentin Swain. As many of you know, Jim is leaving his position at the NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing to take up a new position as dean of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Valdosta State University in southern Georgia. Jim was part of, and helped to shape, the strong and caring academic and clinical team whose members attended the farewell on Wednesday. His colleagues spoke with great respect and affection for the person he is. They talked about his ability to listen, his ability to remain open and calm, and his ability to make a decision when one needed to be made. More than one person remarked that his presence among them was a gentle, pastoral one.

On Thursday night Jim came to the rectory for a drink after Evening Prayer—plenty of room for safe-distancing in the rectory. Some of you know that José Vidal, Jay’s husband, has taken the lead in ringing the church bell at 7:00 PM, as a sign of the parish’s gratitude to New York City’s health-care workers. Jim has volunteered to take on that duty this week. We were still talking at 6:58 PM when his phone reminded him it was time to get downstairs. After ringing the bell, he came back so we could finish our drink. All of that—Jim’s farewell, our conversation that evening, the ringing of the bells—brought back memories and inspired a lot of thinking. No area of my work as a pastor has changed as much as visiting the sick. I have a great deal of respect for the ministries of clergy who are nurses and doctors. They can walk into a hospital room and get a good idea right away about what’s going on. They are able to assess the quality of care pretty quickly. I have been in hospital rooms with such priest-clinicians and have witnessed the grace and comfort they are able to offer, for example, before and after surgery. Jim will be missed here in so many ways. Though his last Mass for us will be on Friday morning, May 15, I’m hoping we can have something of an online coffee hour on Sunday, May 10, after his last Sunday celebration.

Finally, some really good news. The parish’s application for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan has been accepted. My inbox tells me that we started working on our application on Wednesday, April 1. Word of the approval came on Tuesday, April 28. We should receive forms to complete the process very soon. I will keep you posted. In the meantime, you are in my prayers and in our prayers each day at Mass. —Stephen Gerth

YOUR PRAYERS ARE ASKED FOR Michael, Leroy, Hardy, Choy, Martin, Rose, Jorge, Margarita, Shalim, Nam, John, Marilouise, Ken, May, Willard, Alexandra, Takeem, and Burton; for Luke and David, religious; for Ryan, John, Gene, Gaylord, Louis, and Edgar, priests; for Charles, bishop; for all nurses and doctors, for all those who work for the common good; and for all the members, benefactors and friends of this parish.

GRANT THEM PEACE: May 3: 1947 Rachel Howland; 1969 Arthur E. Howlett.

IN THIS TRANSITORY LIFE . . . John McGrath, Father Jay Smith’s first cousin, died of COVID-19 at his care facility in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, this week. He had been in declining health for several years. Please keep John and his siblings, Bernard, Mary Jane, Suzanne, and Brother Michael McGrath, OSF, and all who mourn in your prayers.

WE NEED YOUR HELP . . . We closed our doors on the morning of Sunday, March 15. Since that time life has changed radically here at Saint Mary’s, as it has for all the friends and members of our parish community. Those of you who are reading this newsletter are surely facing challenges of which we do not yet know and perhaps cannot imagine. We know this. The world as we knew it on March 1, or even on March 15, has changed and we are not yet sure of the implications of all those changes. Nonetheless, Saint Mary’s still has many needs. That has not changed. Bills must be paid. The building complex must be attended to. Opportunities for worship and pastoral care must be provided. Planning for the future continues. Many of us are “sheltering in place,” but this is not a holiday or a hiatus for any of us. Practical matters must be attended to. That is why we urge the local and the wider parish community to continue their support of Saint Mary’s. If you have made a pledge for 2020, please continue to make payments on your pledge, if possible. If you have not yet made a pledge for 2020, we urge you to do so. If you are able to make an additional donation to support the parish at this time, we would happily receive it. Donations may be made online via the Giving section of the parish website. You may also make arrangements for other forms of payment by contacting our parish administrator, Christopher Howatt, who would be happy to assist you. We are grateful to all those who continue to support Saint Mary’s so generously. —Stewardship Committee

SPREADING THE WORD . . . Since Saint Mary’s is not exactly a neighborhood parish, we often depend on Sunday Coffee Hour as our way to catch up and hear what’s going on in each other’s lives. Since coffee hour is out, we must rely on other means of communication. If you have some news—a celebration or a challenge—that you would like to share with your fellow parishioners, please let us know. We’d be glad to share your news in the “Around the Parish” section of this newsletter. Notices may be sent by e-mail to Father Jay Smith.

AROUND THE PARISH . . . Parishioner Michael Merenda was admitted to Lenox Hill Hospital this week and underwent surgery. He hopes to return home soon . . . Parishioner John Conner is undergoing a multi-week course of radiation treatment at a clinic in New Jersey. He tells us that the treatment is going well, but that it is tiring . . . We give thanks to God that parishioner Luis Reyes has made a good recovery from COVID-19 and has returned to work . . . Brother David Allen is a monk of the Society of Saint John the Evangelist. Last December, he celebrated his ninetieth birthday and the sixty-first anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood. In early 2020, he underwent surgery and went on to a care facility in Boston for rehabilitation therapy. We heard this week that he was infected with COVID-19. Please keep Brother David, Luis, John, and Michael in your prayers . . . Parishioner Hardy Geer celebrated his eighty-eighth birthday on Tuesday, April 28. We look forward to the day when candles, cake, and singing in his honor can take place once more in Saint Joseph’s Hall. Happy Birthday, Hardy . . . Parishioner MaryJane Boland and her husband, Daniel Picard, are ardent birders. This is migration season and they have been able to engage in their hobby in Central Park in recent weeks, while maintaining social distancing. MaryJane let us know this week that they had seen a grasshopper sparrow in the Park last weekend. Apparently, this was something of an event. This species of sparrow is listed as “Of Special Concern” in New York State. For more information, and some photos, you are invited to visit the website of New York State’s Department of Environmental Conservation . . . On Wednesday, April 29, Father Gerth, Father Smith, Quentin Swain, and José Vidal attended a goodbye celebration via Zoom for Father Jim Pace, hosted by the dean of the Rory Meyers College of Nursing at New York University. It was moving to hear Jim’s colleagues speak of his many gifts as a nurse, a teacher, a scholar, a mentor, and an administrator. A common theme of the accolades was Jim’s ability to bring his pastoral skills to his work as a clinician. Father Smith and Father Gerth were able to speak about Father Pace’s contributions to the life of this parish . . . We received news recently that Father Michael Allen will be retiring soon and will be leaving his position as rector of Trinity Church, Allendale, NJ. His last Sunday at his parish will be August 16. Michael is a longtime friend of Saint Mary’s and is the husband of parishioner, Penny Allen. They will be moving to their home on the Jersey Shore.

FROM THE FRIARY . . . Brother Damien Joseph SSF and Brother Thomas SSF, along with some of their brothers in California, have been posting meditations and reflections on the current crisis on the website of the Society of Saint Francis in recent weeks. Brother Thomas posted a new reflection this week entitled “On the Road to Emmaus”. We commend it to you . . . Brother Desmond Alban SSF attended virtual meetings of the leaders of the Conference of Anglican Religious Orders in the Americas (CAROA) this week. Desmond is the Society of Saint Francis’s Minister Provincial for the Americas. He had planned to move here to Saint Mary’s this spring. Those plans have been postponed. We hope that he will be able to join us soon.

MUSIC AT SAINT MARY’S . . . Dr. David Hurd, organist and music director at Saint Mary’s has been sharing with the parish community a series of articles entitled “Music Listening for the Easter Season.” The fourth part of the series will soon be on our website.

NEWS OF A FREE FOOD PROGRAM . . . We recently learned that the New York City Department of Education has organized and is staffing a feeding program for both adults and children here in the city. These are the details:
–        The New York City Department of Education is committed to making free meals available daily for any New Yorker. Any New Yorker who wants one can get free meals at more than 400 Meal Hubs across the city.
–        Meals can be picked up at all Meal Hubs 7:30 AM to 1:30 PM, Monday through Friday.
–        Meals Hubs will operate for children and families from 7:30 AM to 11:30 AM, and for adults from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM.
–        No one will be turned away at any time.
–        All adults and children can pick up multiple meals at one time.
–        Vegetarian and halal options available at all sites (and the program is working to provide kosher meals as well).
–        No dining space is available, so meals must be eaten off premises.
–        Parents and guardians may pick up meals for their children.
–        No registration or ID required. 

For more information and to locate a Meal Hub near you, you may visit the program website.

THIS WEEK AT SAINT MARY’S . . . For the foreseeable future, the resident clergy and the friars will continue to celebrate the Eucharist every day at 10:00 AM in the Lady Chapel. On Saturdays and Sundays, we gather for Evening Prayer at 5:00 PM, and on weekdays at 6:00 PM. The daily 10:00 AM Mass and Sunday Evening Prayer & Sung Benediction at 5:00 PM are live-streamed on the parish’s Facebook page. The videos are then posted on the Saint Mary’s website here . . . Sunday, April 26, Fourth Sunday of Easter, Mass 10:00 AM in the Lady Chapel and Evening Prayer and Eucharistic Benediction 5:00 PM. The readings at Mass are 1 Peter 2:19–25; Psalm 23; John 10:1–10. The theme of God as Shepherd runs through all of those readings. Father Gerth presides and preaches at the 10:00 AM Mass this coming Sunday.

OF LIVESTREAMS, PODCASTS, AND VIDEO ARCHIVES . . . Since the middle of March, we have been livestreaming at least one service per day from the Lady Chapel. Those who have watched the videos know that we have faced some technical difficulties along the way, but that we have done our best to solve those difficulties. We use cellular service and no longer depend on Wi-Fi, which is weak at the north end of the building complex. We have purchased better data plans for our phones. Phones now run on electricity and not their batteries. We continue to make adjustments to camera placement and lighting. We ask the indulgence of our viewers: the Lady Chapel was never designed to be a television studio, and lighting in the chapel is tricky and not easily altered or supplemented at this time.

We have also received questions from some of our viewers about copyright issues. We own licenses from Church Publishing (Ritesong and Ritebrain) that grant us the right to print music and text from the church’s worship sources. We own a license from ONELICENSE that grants us the right to download, print, and use music not covered by the copyright permissions of Ritesong and Ritebrain. (Such usage must be reported on a regular basis.) In addition, ONELICENSE granted all its licensees the right to livestream and archive their worship services during the epidemic through and including Wednesday, April 15 without purchasing an add-on to their annual license. On April 16, we purchased an add-on to our annual ONELICENSE agreement. This now allows us to livestream and archive videos of our services and to archive printed service bulletins containing music. The archived materials must be taken down one year after the date of the service. The titles of music sung at the services that is under copyright must be reported to ONELICENSE on a regular basis, usually monthly. We have been in communication with Church Publishing and with ONELICENSE to make sure that we are fully in compliance with copyright law and their rules and requirements. It is our belief that we have covered all the bases. We continue to monitor this situation. —J.R.S.

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