First, a HUGE thank you to everyone for your patience over the last 4½ months following the fire and as we have carried out the many pieces of work to get our parish home back on track. What a journey!
Please note, there are still several items being worked on by the various contractors and Parish Team including the carpet, curtains, Day Chapel altar and smaller pieces of furniture that were destroyed in the fire. The decision was made to open so that we could monitor the technology over the coming weeks and ensure everything is running correctly for the ordination of our new bishop.
Last Sunday we welcomed everyone to our Sunday Masses including the St James 65th Jubilee Mass at 9.30am and it was amazing to be back together as a community. Through the week Masses and Liturgies have also returned to the Nave.
You may have noticed several changes including the times when the Cathedral is open and the lack of candles.
Until we (Bishop, Diocesan staff, Parish Team) have had a robust and collective discussion around the security of the Cathedral, the following guidelines are in place:
- No candles will be left in the Cathedral (after every Mass, the main altar candles and Easter candle are being removed from the stands).
- The candle stand with the votive candles has been removed.
- The Cathedral will only be opened ½ hour prior to each Mass and closed following the conclusion of the Mass.
Again, we will keep these precautions in place until decisions have been made.
Our thanks go to the Parishes of Our Lady of Lourdes and St Mary’s Ruahine St for making their churches available to us. Their generosity will be acknowledged in the coming weeks and we will keep you informed of how this will look.
The Parish Team look forward to seeing you all back here at the Cathedral in the coming weeks. Please remember to check the rosters to ensure you are covering the ministry that you volunteered for. If you haven’t had a chance to put your name down for one of the ministries, please feel free to contact the Parish Office and offer your services.
Blessings to all.