As cases of Covid-19 are spiking throughout the country and locally, we would like to take a moment to remind our parishioners and guests of safety protocols to consider before coming to mass, either for Sunday liturgy or for weekday mass or private prayer. 

The safety of our parishioners and friends remains our priority. Please review the self-screening questions prior to coming to St. Stephens. 
We encourage you to print and save a copy of these and to do a quick review prior to visiting our church. 

1. Since your last visit to St. Stephens, have you had any of these symptoms?

• Fever (temperature of greater than 100F in the last 14 days)
• Persistent dry cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Chills
• Repeated shaking with chills
• Overall body aches and pains
• Headache
• Sore throat
• New loss of taste or smell

• Hand sanitizer is located when you enter the church, in the atrium. Please sanitize your hands before entering the sanctuary.
• Masks are required while in the building and must completely cover your mouth and nose at all times. This is to protect you as well as your neighbor.
• Practice social distancing when you are entering the church, approaching the altar for communion and leaving the church. 

Thank you for taking the time to read this information and consider these guidelines. We care about your safety and the health and safety of your family members, our priests, deacons and staff.

Now that we have been back to Mass for a few months now, we wanted to update parishioners once again and revise some of the Frequently Asked Questions that were sent out previously.
Do we all need to wear masks in church? Yes. The virus is still out there, and mandatory wearing of masks continues to be an important way to help stop the spread. Clergy and parish office staff wear masks throughout the day while in the building and masks are sttill required when attending Mass. This is for the health and well-being of all parishioners, clergy and staff and we greatly appreciate your continued cooperation with this policy.
Will another Sunday Mass be added? Yes! And with the addition of another Mass, the existing Mass schedule will change slightly.

Sunday 7:30 a.m. Mass returns on Sunday, October 4: As with all other weekend Masses, reservations will be required, the link will be provided in the weekly email on Thursdays;
Sunday 11:00 a.m. Mass: note the change from 11:30. On Sunday, October 4, the 11:30 a.m. Mass will be adjusted to start at 11:00 a.m. This adjustment is being made to accommodate the local Dial-a-Bus service that many of our senior parishioners use to get to Mass.
The Sunday, 5:00 p.m. Spanish Mass also returns on October 4.
What about the 7 a.m. Daily Mass? Yes!
Daily 7 a.m. Mass returns – Beginning on Thursday, October 1, the 7 a.m. weekday Mass will take place on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays (pre-Covid schedule).
Daily Mass Seating Etiquette: Daily Mass is “seat yourself” but we have had incidences of parishioners seatng themselves in pews that are clearly marked as “Closed” (at times even turning over the “closed” sign and moving it aside to sit down), placing themselves immediately behind another parishioner and too close for the six-foot social distancing. The tape was removed in order to make the pews more “welcoming”, but may have to be put up again if those in attendance continue to seat themselves in “closed” pews. Please be considerate of your fellow parishioners. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter. 
Are reservations still necessary? Yes. As Mass attendance “picks up” after Labor Day and as more parishioners are more comfortable attending Mass, reservations are still the way in which we can seat everyone safely. We continue to need to know the make-up of the family units that are attending in order to maximize seatng in the available pews and chairs.
What is our church capacity under Covid-19 restrictions? Our church capacity, under Covid-19 social distancing restrictions and church configuration remains the same, with the same challenges of fitting various family units into different-sized pews. With the addition of the Sunday 7:30 Mass we hope to spread attendance out more – you may have noticed that the Atrium is now used regularly at nearly every Mass.
Why do ushers have to take us to our seats? The ushers continue to be an invaluable asset for each and every weekend Mass. Their knowledge of the seating system and ability to assess “on the fly” where available seats are, have allowed the seating process to be done efficiently every week.
Parishioners should make every effort to arrive 15-20 minutes prior to Mass to ensure everyone gets seated prior to the start of Mass.
If your plans change, please make every effort to cancel your reservation via SignUpGenius so that your seats can accommodate another family.

When you attend Mass, you will find that there are no missals in the pew to follow along with the readings.  We are including some resources below to either purchase a print subscription that you may bring with you each time you come to Mass, or links to view the aids online.  We hope that this helps bring the Mass even closer to you!

The Magnificat:   https://us.magnificat.net
Magnificat is a spiritual guide to help you develop your prayer life, grow in your spiritual life, find a way to a more profound love for Christ, and participate in the holy Mass with greater fervor.
Magnificat is a monthly publication designed for daily use, to encourage both liturgical and personal prayer. It can be used to follow daily Mass  and can also be read at home or wherever you find yourself for personal or family prayer.
Every day, in a convenient, pocket-sized format, Magnificat offers beautiful prayers for both morning and evening drawn from the treasures of the Liturgy of the Hours, the official texts of daily Mass, meditationswritten by spiritual giants of the Church and more contemporary authors, essays on the lives of the saints of today and yesterday, and articles giving valuable spiritual insight into masterpieces of sacred art.

Word Among Us:  https://wau.org
"The Word Among Us is intended to assist people in reading, meditating on and understanding scripture [and to] provide sound, practical advice for Catholics on the living out of the Christian life... We can have a relationship of love and friendship with the Son of God."
Throughout its history, The Word Among Us has continued to follow this pattern of encouraging its readers to experience God’s presence in scripture and prayer and thus receive the grace of the Spirit more deeply in their lives.
The magazine's name, The Word Among Us, comes from the Prologue to the Gospel of John: "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father" (John 1:14). This passage reflects the vision and purpose of our publication: To be an instrument of the Spirit whose desire is to manifest Jesus’ presence in and to the children of God. In this way, we hope to contribute to the church’s ongoing mission of proclaiming the gospel to the world and growing ever more deeply in our love for the Lord.

USCCB:  http://www.usccb.org
he United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is an assembly of the hierarchy of the United States and the U.S. Virgin Islands who jointly exercise certain pastoral functions on behalf of the Christian faithful of the United States. The purpose of the Conference is to promote the greater good which the Church offers humankind, especially through forms and programs of the apostolate fittingly adapted to the circumstances of time and place. This purpose is drawn from the universal law of the Church and applies to the episcopal conferences which are established all over the world for the same purpose.