ABOUT OUR PARISH
From the time St Teresa Catholic Church was established in 1937, to the move in 2009, the history of St Teresa is extensive.
Bulletins & Ministry Schedules:
Dear Celina Cluster Parishioner,
Last week we shared the announcement from the Catholic Bishops of Ohio and Archbishop Schnurr that “public worship may begin in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati on Monday, May 25th.” “May” is a small but significant word for us in Mercer County and the Celina Cluster. As many of you have been aware, the number of positive COVID-19 cases continue to increase in our local area https://merceroh.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/681d75212bc444638bb6d5b852dee462 In recent days, several local pastors, doctors and other health care professionals have been assessing the situation and out of concern for the safety of all, have decided to delay resuming public masses to June 1st and June 6th for weekends. This includes the Celina, Coldwater, Marion and St. Henry clusters. Holy Rosary in St. Mary’s and Holy Redeemer in New Bremen are still opening as originally planned, but they are also in Auglaize County with fewer positive cases. A letter to all cluster parishioners, Guidelines for the Resumption of Public Worship and a SAMPLE of social distancing seating diagram (respective to each parish) has been posted on each of our parish websites and will be mailed to all Celina Cluster parishioners this week. The guidelines for each respective parish were reviewed and discussed by parishioners from each parish who are health and safety professionals, and adapted accordingly with the health and safety of all parishioners in mind. Please note, that while the safety precautions may not be as critical for you, they could be a matter of life and death for someone else in our parish family.
We understand the yearning desire in so many to get back to some sense of normalcy and routine, something that is familiar and safe, and assures us that everything is going to be okay. What better place to begin than the very gift of the Eucharist that is truly food for the journey? At the same time, we need to remember that we live in a time of pandemic when the spread of the coronavirus is still increasing. We need to take those necessary precautions of staying at home if elderly and at risk of health complications, wearing a face mask if we do go out, washing our hands regularly with warm soapy water and/or using hand sanitizer if necessary and social distancing. These are health and safety measures intended to protect ourselves, our loved ones and all those we encounter.
There are several points from the guidelines that we would like to highlight:
All faithful are reminded they have been dispensed from their Sunday obligation, and thus their desire to participate in Mass could be fulfilled on any day of the week.
Those who are at risk or fearful that they or their family might become sick are encouraged to stay home and join the Church by viewing live-streamed Masses.
All faithful are strongly encouraged to wear a face mask out of genuine love and concern for others, especially entering and leaving and whenever interacting with others. Use of hand sanitizer is also strongly encouraged.
For IC & St. Teresa - Collection baskets will be placed at the entrances asking parishioners to make offering as they enter church. OLG ushers will continue using long handled baskets. Thank you for your continued generosity.
One time use worship aides will be available for each Mass with recycle receptacles available after Mass.
Every other pew will be used for seating each weekend Mass to assure social distancing and reduce the need for cleaning in between Masses. For the safety of all and to assure access for Eucharistic Ministers distributing Holy Communion in the empty rows of pews at each Mass, please respect and follow color designations for seating.
Please begin seating in the front of the church, maximizing the full use of the church and pews with social distancing in mind.
Holy Communion will be distributed to parishioners remaining in their pews by priest, deacon and EM’s wearing masks. They will be using empty rows of pews to reach all parishioners.
Please be assured that we are doing everything we can to make the resumption of public Masses as safe as possible, but there are no full proof guarantees what is the best way. If you have any doubt or question about returning to Church during the coronavirus pandemic, we encourage you to stay home and view online perhaps requesting a family member to bring Holy Communion to you or perhaps attend Mass during the week. While striving to keep everyone safe is our top priority, we also want to be hospitable and inviting, helping people feel welcomed back into the church after having been away for such a long time. There will likely be some awkwardness returning to Mass in church, and it may even happen that you are not able to sit in “your seat” in church, but please also know that over time, our new normal pattern of church will also resume.
Our sincere hope is that we can do the best planning possible for the safe return to public Masses, those who are higher risk stay home and view online, perhaps come during the week, etc., and that we are able to safely accommodate all those who do gather creating a prayerful and welcoming celebration for all.
Please remember in your prayers IC parishioner Ronald “Ron” Houts who died on Sunday and his family. A private family funeral will be held Friday, May 22, 2020 at 10:30 AM, but extended family and friends are invited to join us on livestream at https://celina-ic.org/ and then the “Live Stream” on the top right corner of the IC webpage and follow prompts to the Mass.
Let us pray that Jesus, the Good Shepherd will watch over us and all faithful once again gathering in church, keeping us safe, feeding us and ultimately showing us the way home.
Blessings and prayers, Fr. Ken & Fr. Tim
Bidding on this last set of baskets ends
tomorrow morning at 9 AM!
FINAL WEEK OF AUCTION!!!
ST TERESA'S FAMILY FUN NIGHT ONLINE AUCTION
ALL BIDDING WILL END FRIDAY MAY 22TH AT 9 AM
PLEASE READ ALL RULES/GUIDELINES BEFORE BIDDING!
Online Auction Guidelines:
1. View items and place bids on St Teresa Parish Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/StTeresaParish/. Bids must be made as a comment on the item posted to St Teresa Parish’s Page to be considered valid.
2. To make a bid for an Online Auction Item, locate the item on St Teresa Parish’s Facebook Page, enter your bid in the comment section under the picture of the item that you are bidding on. The opening bid on each item will be posted by St Teresa Parish. Each subsequent bid must follow the minimum increment of $5.00. Any bid not adhering to these guidelines will be declared invalid and DELETED.
3. Once the auction is declared closed AT 9 AM ON FRIDAY, the highest bid entered in the comment section that adheres to the designated increment shall constitute the winning bid and will be so marked. In the event of a dispute, St Teresa Parish administration shall act as the final authority AND LOOK AT THE FACEBOOK TIME STAMP.
4. The winning bidder will be contacted via Facebook Messenger, to discuss payment and pick up/delivery.
a. Payment must be made in full before pick up cash, check or credit card through St Teresa Parish website WeShare account.
b. Arrangements for pickup will be made with health and safety in mind, on convenient future date, at St Teresa Parish.
5. If you are unable to prepay for items, the items will be offered to the next highest bidder and sold.
6. By bidding in the Online Auction, each bidder agrees to these auction rules. St Teresa Parish reserves the right to add or withdraw items, without notice, to or from the Online Auction. Auction item purchases are final. No returns or exchanges will be issued. All items “as is”.
7. St Teresa Parish provides no guarantees, warranties or servicing of auction items and is not liable for any personal injury of damage to property that may result from the use of the item or service sold.
Thank you for your support of St Teresa Online Auction!
HAPPY BIDDING!
Info:
St Teresa Catholic Church
4227 State Route 707 Box 445
Rockford, Ohio 45882-0445
Church Office (419) 363-2633
Residence (419) 586-6648
Rev Ken Schnipke, C.PP.S., Pastor
Fr Tim McFarland, C.PP.S, Parochial Vicar
CELINA CLUSTER RESUMPTION OF MASSES LETTER MAY 2020
ST TERESA GUIDELINES FOR THE RESUMPTION OF PUBLIC WORSHIP
ST TERESA CHURCH SAMPLE SOCIAL DISTANCING SEATING
Catholic Bishops of Ohio Continue Suspension of Public Masses through May 29, 2020
ARCHBISHOP SCHNURR LETTER TO THE FAITHFUL 3-17-20
Suspension-of-all-Publicly-Celebrated-Masses-Liturgies
CORONAVIRUS UPDATE FROM THE CATHOLIC BISHOPS OF OHIO & CELINA CLUSTER
Parish News:
Family Fun Night has turned into an Online Auction for the gift baskets that have been donated by local businesses. Online auction will be open to the public on St Teresa Facebook page, www.facebook.com/StTeresaRockford/. Be sure to invite friends and family to participate. Thank you to those who donated and remember to help support your local business! The auction will be May 4th – 22nd. Be sure to read and follow the guidelines for this event. Thanks for your support and happy bidding!
Dear Celina Cluster Parishioner,
Several parishioners have asked how things are going in the parish, so we thought we would share some highlights and what is happening at each place.
Diane stteresachurch@bright.net is in the office at St. Teresa most of her regularly scheduled days/hours, but also working some from home and Cheryl crestteresa@bright.net comes in for RE matters as needed.
Cassie ologcassie@gmail.com and Linda ologlinda@yahoo.com are alternating days at OLG Monday through Thursday, but also working some at home.
IC Office Staff (Lindsey llunz@celina-ic.org & Ann ann@celina-ic.org) and RE/Youth staff (Joyce jjohnson@celina-ic.org, Tiffany tpierstorff@celina-ic.org & Gary glocke@celina-ic.org) are mostly working remotely from home, but in the office occasionally for critical matters.
Polly, IC School principal, polly.muhlenkamp@icschool-celina.org is in the office many days coordinating school efforts and other school staff come in as needed for materials. Teachers continue to send educational materials home for children and parents.
Fr. Tim tmcfarland@celina-ic.org and I kschnipke@celina-ic.org are also working from home and the office at the same time since we “live above the store.” We are mostly staying home, but going out for emergency calls and an occasional order out to support local business.
Please know that all the Celina Cluster Staff continue to be available to serve you and respond to needs. You are welcome to contact the parish offices by phone, especially if needing to visit the parish office to make sure someone is available. Please practice social distancing and good hygiene for the safety of all. If leaving a voicemail for Lindsey or Ann, please note they may not hear it for a few days. A sure way to contact any staff member is by email as they check it regularly. If there are any emergencies, please use the emergency cell phone 419-953-6231 and leave a message if Fr. Tim or I are not able to respond immediately. We do monitor the emergency phone regularly and will return calls as soon as possible.
Following the recommendation of the Archdiocese, each cluster parish will continue to pay staff for regular hours whether they are onsite, working from home or unable to work due to the stay at home order. Like many others, they too rely on income to care for their families.
At the same time, each parish is experiencing a significant loss of income as the main source of income for any parish is the Sunday collection. If you are able to continue your weekly offering, that is greatly appreciated as it helps with the regular bills and utilities that we need to keep paying. If you are struggling financially yourself due to the loss of a job, reduced wages or other financial setbacks, we do understand that your family takes priority. Offertory envelopes can be dropped off or sent to our respective parish offices or online contributions can be made to each of the parishes at https://celina-ic.weshareonline.org/index.aspx Fortunately, each parish has also been blest with savings that can be utilized if necessary. Each parish has projected expenses several months out so that we can be proactive if we need to utilize savings.
IC Church remains open for private prayer Mon-Fri 9:00 AM to 7 PM, Sat. 7:30 AM to 4 PM, Sunday 7 AM to 7 PM. OLG is open daily from 7 AM to 7 PM. St. Teresa will be open Wed. 1 PM to 5 PM, Sunday from 10 AM to 12 PM. Bulletins are available online and in each church. As you visit church, please be mindful of good hygiene practices for you and for others, possibly wiping surfaces and objects you touch with disinfecting wipes.
While updating the PAC sign at IC, I noticed a reflection of the world. Indeed, the world has become closer and more connected in a most unusual way in this time of crisis. Let us all “Pray Healing For Our World.”
Blessings and prayers, Fr. Ken & Fr. Tim
Fr. Ken Schnipke, C.PP.S.
IC, OLG & St. Teresa
229 W. Anthony St.
Celina, OH 45822
(419) 586-6648
St Teresa Church will be open for private prayer Wednesdays 1pm-4pm and Sundays from 10am-12pm. In addition, St. Teresa Church will be open for individual sacrament of reconciliation and prayer from 6:30 to 7:30 PM on March 25th and April 8th. There are prayers in the pews and missalettes for your reference. You are encouraged to drop off your envelopes at this time. As you visit church, please be mindful of good hygiene practices for you and for others, possibly wiping surfaces and objects you touch with disinfecting wipes.
The closed-door 5 PM Saturday Mass at IC broadcast on Live Stream that can be viewed live or any time after. Click on https://celina-ic.org/ and then the “Live Stream” on the top right corner of the IC webpage and follow prompts to the Mass.
The closed-door 8:00 AM Masses Mon-Fri at IC broadcast on Live Stream that can be viewed live or any time after.
Prayer During an Epidemic
Our Sunday Visitor
Lord Jesus,
Hear our please, our good shepherd and divine physician.
We implore your mercy in the wake of an outbreak of serious illness and disease.
Guide our efforts to prevent contagion and make preparations to care for those most vulnerable.
Assist all professionals and volunteers who work to eradicate the epidemic now spreading.
May our actions be marked by your steadfast love and self-less service and never by panic or fear.
Bestow your comfort and healing to the sick, sustain and strengthen them by your grace.
May they know your closeness as they carry the cross of illness.
And may all you have called from this life come to worship you eternally with all the saints as you grant consolation and peace to their mourners. Amen.
Holy Mary, Health of the Sick, pray for us.
St. Joseph, Hope of the Sick, pray for us.
St. Rocco, protector against epidemics, pray for us.
Family Fun Night has been rescheduled for Saturday, May 9th at the Rockford Community Building. However the meal will still take place this Saturday as a drive thru. This will be the food only, no drinks will be supplied. Please remember to bring your tickets! Please share with friends and family who may have tickets.
Monthly Money Madness Flyer 2020
St Teresa’s Monthly Money Madness
- Each month for a whole year you will have a chance to win up to $200.00 each month. We will draw 4 tickets- 1st one is $100.00 winner, 2nd one is $50.00 and 3rd and 4th ticket is $25.00 each. All tickets are in for each of the three prizes.
- Only 100 tickets will be sold.
- Need not be present to win.
- Drawing will be held the 2nd Sunday of each month.
- 1st drawing will be on Saturday March 14th This drawing will take place at St. Teresa’s Family Fun Night.
- Prize dollars will be doubled on March 14th if you are present at the Family Fun Night. If not present, you will receive the regular amount.
- Tickets available at the Parish office or contact Ray or Lynn Moeller at 419-586-7312 or rgmoeller86@gmail.com
Each ticket is $50.00
Sponsored by St. Teresa’s Parish. All proceeds benefit the parish.
ADDRESS:
4227 St Route 707 /Box 445
Rockford, Ohio 45882-0445
EMAIL:
PHONES:
Office: (419) 363-2633
Residence: (419) 586-6648
OFFICE HOURS:
M, T, TH 9-11am;
Wed 9-5pm; Fri 9-1
