Beloved Parishioners and Friends of St. Maron,
Grace, love, and peace to you with the hope that you are in good health with your family and loved ones. Needless to say, we miss you terribly at your home of St. Maron. We await the day when we will return back to normal and we return to participate together fully in the Holy Eucharist. Meanwhile, we need you to remain healthy and to take care of yourself until this pandemic passes away. Like every other pandemic that was before, it will disappear and life will return back to normal. I know it has been very difficult for our community as well as for everyone just to be that distance, but just know that you are in the heart of your spiritual home and on its altar every single day asking our Lord God to protect you from misfortunes and any harm.
As I am preparing this newsletter the churches are being opened at this time at a 25% capacity. I invite you to read carefully the notice inside this bulletin on pages 4 and 5 that prepares us to open our doors and have a very safe return. If we all do our part and be careful it should all go very well and smooth. Of course due to the Covd-19 our large gatherings have been cancelled including hall gatherings as well as dinners and parties and so on. Even with our Cedars Hall business that is usually booked all summer, it has been all cancelled.
We kept celebrating our liturgy and thank God for the social media, we were able to broadcast and live stream our daily liturgies. Thank God we were able to have drive through confession every day of lent as well as 3 days a week following Easter. We are trying to learn to adjust with every day’s situation as it keeps changing. We will be ready and prepared to do all in our power and capacity to serve you whether on line or in person. Due to the Covid-19, unfortunately I have not been allowed by the hospitals to enter into the unit where somebody might be suffering from Covid-19. We have had funerals and other events with 10 people or less in our community. This pandemic calls all of us to be cautious and patient and continue praying for an end to this pandemic and for the protection of all our loved ones.
Despite the Covid-19 there have been amazing things happening in our community, as we see the love of God being poured and shared by so many, as people serve the church and one another with compassion and mercy, with social distancing. We were blessed with the Ordination of Deacon Mikael (Chady) Jalkh by our Bishop Elias recently. So many amazing parishioners came forward to serve during the lockdown in order to keep our Liturgies broadcast and run so smoothly and with much respect and dignity. Thanks to all those who have made our website and social media run so smoothly, those who run the cameras, those who serve singing, serving, reading, especially our subdeacons. I encourage you to keep your spiritual life strong, to keep your home as a small domestic church where Christ is the center of your daily activities. Pray with and for one another, and remember me in your prayers as I keep you in mine every day.
Looking forward to the day when we meet again together,
Yours in Christ,
Chorbishop sharbel Maroun
