UPDATE FROM THE SHRINE DURING "NEW YORK STATE ON PAUSE"

UPDATE: April 5, 2020

A Palm Sunday Message from Fr. Tim

MY "A-HA" MOMENT

My dear friends,

The reality of our present COVID-19 virus finally became apparent to me. As this threat increased over these past few weeks, I continued to seek a safe and prudent method to be available to all who desire the Sacraments.

Last weekend, I set up a maze with chairs in our parking lot to be able to hear confessions car-to-car. The success of this effort drove me to continue making signs that would inform all who drove by the Shrine and all who are viewing our news on the web to come to the Shrine during Holy Week for confessions and to view the Eucharist in a monstrance, along with the healing relic of St. Kateri in our parking lot on our portable altar. I was contacted by numerous individuals who are very knowledgeable of this virus and asked to not pursue these religious practices.

Knowing of their concern, not only of my health but the health and safety of all, I have decided that the Shrine of St. Kateri will continue to be holy grounds of healing and peace, but no one has to be here on the property to receive spiritual healing and comfort. The Shrine will remain open during Holy Week, Easter, and after Easter, but in a limited capacity. We wish all to be safe and isolate yourself, especially in prayer at home during these next few weeks. We will also be posting more resources to aid in your spiritual journey at home.

-Fr. Tim

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UPDATE: April 6, 2020

Holy Week Resources

The Shrine of Saint Anthony -- which, like our Shrine, is a mission of Our Lady of the Angels Province -- is leading prayers this Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. You can tune in to their livestream channel at 4:00pm each day or watch later at your convenience. More information can be found here:
https://shrineofstanthony.org/events/holy-week-mission-w-fr-jude-winkler

We had already posted a link on our Spiritual Resources page to daily Mass said by Franciscan Missionaries of the Eternal Word:
https://franciscanmissionaries.com/homily/
We would also like to add a link to daily Mass said by Saint Bonaventure Catholic Church in Toronto, which is now home to Friar Mark Steed, who was Chaplain and Director of the Shrine for many years. The friars here take turns saying Mass, so keep an eye out and you may spot him!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBJEZpaqzKUzQZYaBeEALNQ

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Friends, in these stressful and uncertain times, the Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Shrine and National Historic Site is striving to be a source of comfort. Our mission is to honor our Creator and Saint Kateri by providing a sacred place of peace and healing for all people, while maintaining the highest standards of faith, service, and integrity of Creation in the spirit of Saint Francis of Assisi.

To protect our staff and visitors, the Shrine office is closed to the public at this time. However, our staff can still be reached via email. The Shrine grounds are open, including walking paths and hiking trails, and we hope that you will take Gov. Cuomo’s advice and engage in some solitary outdoor exercise if you are able. We have 160 acres here, so please take advantage of them! We are also home to the open-air Saint Maximilian Kolbe Pavilion that is designed to be used for religious services, so if your local church is closed and you are looking for a place to pray, please know that you are welcome at the Shrine.

We are still accepting prayer requests, which can either be left in the Candle Chapel on the Shrine grounds or mailed to the Saint Kateri National Shrine, PO Box 627, Fonda, NY 12068. We also continue to operate solely on donations, so if you have the capacity to contribute financially, we would greatly appreciate anything you can provide via those methods, as well. Contributions can also be made through the Donate button on our Facebook page. If you are unable to send any financial support, we would also appreciate spiritual support in the form of prayers and spreading the word about our mission and the availability of our grounds as a place of solace.

Additionally, we have added a “Spiritual Resources” page to our web site. There you will find an archive of monthly prayer letters from Shrine Chaplain Fr. Timothy Lyons, links to various prayers and religious guidance, information about Saint Kateri and a faith-based approach to ecology, and streaming outdoor webcams to continue to foster our connection with nature. We will try to keep posting new information and resources on this page as they become available, so please check in regularly.

We have some other plans in the works to be source of support and comfort in this difficult time, and we will keep you updated as things progress. In the meantime, stay safe and know that you are all in our prayers.