The Archdiocese of Hartford released the following information based the State's guidelines changing on May 19, 2021. Please read all of the information below carefully, and reach out to the Parish Office with any questions. You can also visit https://archdioceseofhartford.org/coronavirus where both letters dated May 10th are posted. We look forward to continuing to welcome you back to Mass!
1) As of Saturday, May 22, 2021, the General Dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass in person on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation will be lifted.
However, since the risk of infection, though diminished, still remains, the following individuals with valid health concerns or fears about the virus may very legitimately decide not yet to attend:
Those suffering from serious pre-existing conditions making them more susceptible to COVID-19;
Those who are ill or homebound or who are caregivers in close contact with someone who is;
Those who have tested positive for any contagious disease, including COVID-19;
Those who are in quarantine due to exposure to any contagion, or who reside with someone who is quarantined.
2) Live-Streaming will continue for the time being for those who still cannot attend in-person.
3) Our temporary COVID Mass schedule will continue until attendance numbers warrant the return to 6 Masses per weekend (see graphic above):
The St. Mary Hall will continue to be set up for overflow seating in some capacity, for those who choose to sit there instead of the main church.
Confessions will not resume at St. Therese until proper updates are made to the Reconciliation room
4) The following indoor guidelines will change on May 19th:
100% capacity with no pew tape/ropes or specific social distancing
Masks are still required inside
Congregational singing is permitted once again with masks, although we will not encourage full congregational singing at St. John Bosco until a later date, to allow our parishioners time to ease back into in-person Mass.
Use of restrooms available during Mass
Sign of Peace can resume but with no hand contact
Holy water fonts will remain empty and there will still be no Offertory procession
We will continue to use the offertory boxes at both churches in lieu of passing the basket
5) Ministry Meetings will follow these same new guidelines
100% capacity in the Hall with use of tables and no specific social distancing
Masks still required during meetings
No sanitization afterwards by volunteers (parish staff will handle)
Multiple meetings can be scheduled at the same time in the St. Mary Hall with the use of the room dividers, as needed.
Coffee and.. and any other food gathering is still suspended, until the mask requirement is gone.
6) Specific information for Eucharistic Ministers, Altar Servers, and Faith Formation will be sent out later this week. Please be patient!
At St. John Bosco Parish, we have resumed the public celebration of weekday Mass. Important things to note:
Although churches no longer have a capacity limit, social distancing measures are still in effect and therefore we can still only fit approximately 125 people inside St. Mary and 100 people inside St. Therese, until all marked pew spaces are filled. Everyone must follow social distancing and wear masks, with NO use of public restrooms. Communion will be safely distributed to those who choose.
Seats are now first-come, first-serve, with limited overflow seating available in the St. Mary Hall on weekends (including the distribution of Communion). To get a seat inside the church on weekends, we recommend arriving at least 15-20 minutes early, entering through any door. While we hope not to have to turn anyone away, in the event it does happen we ask for your understanding, patience, and flexibility.
CONFESSIONS are every Saturday before the Vigil Mass, 4:00-4:30 PM at St. Mary or by appointment.
With any questions, please contact the Parish Office at 203-488-1607 or [email protected].
LIVE-STREAM MASS
Live-stream Mass every Sunday at 9:30 AM on our parish Facebook page or YouTube channel or watch anytime thereafter. *Note: you do not need a Facebook account in order to view our page!
If using YouTube, be sure to chose 1080p on the settings wheel for best video quality! You can also stream to a smart TV using YouTube or Facebook Watch apps, or plugging your phone/iPad into your smart TV using a HDMI cable.
WORSHIP AIDS!
Click here to download and print the Worship Aid for this Sunday, to follow along with the hymns and readings during Mass!
The churches are open for individual prayer during the following hours:
St. Therese 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM (Mon-Fri)
St. Mary 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM (Mon-Fri) 7:00 AM to 12:00 PM (Sat) 1:00 to 4:00 PM (Sun)
The Parish Office has also re-opened to in-person visitors 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM (Mon-Fri)
KofC Plant Sale
The KofC Annual Pro-Life Plant sale will be the weekends of May 8/9 and May 15/16. Click here to download the letter, and click here to download the order form which can be returned to the offertory boxes or Parish Office!
Click here to see more information and links about "The Bible in a Year" Podcast by Fr. Mike Schmitz, and periodic reflection sessions with our own Fr. John!
We have adopted a new way of communicating with you! You may receive an email or text message from the parish sent from our new system, Evangelus, run by the same company as our Parish App. This is not spam. We encourage you to open the message and follow the link to create a profile and select your preferred form of contact. Get emails or text messages directly to your phone during this time of social distancing, such as the link for live-streamed Mass each week. There will also be groups for you to join, just like on the Parish App. Visit eva.us/johnbosco to sign-up and let us know if you prefer to receive emails or text messages from us!
DO YOU KEEP RECEIVING A RECURRING TEXT MESSAGE?
It has just come to our attention that for those cell phone numbers who were imported into Evangelus, a recurring invitation message will continue to be sent every time we send out a message UNTIL YOU DO ONE OF THE FOLLOWING: respond YES to sign up to receive messages from us, or respond STOP to "opt-out" and not receive any more messages.
Unfortunately this is a system feature and there is nothing we can do on our end to stop it, unless you tell us directly you need help and want to be taken off (or just respond STOP to the message directly). If you need assistance please contact the Parish Office at 203-488-1607 or [email protected]. We apologize for any frustration it has caused!
OFFERTORY - ONLINE, MAIL IN, OR DROP OFF!
The archdiocese urges that during this time parishioners who are absent from Mass make alternative provision for their weekly contributions since parishes depend on them for operation. You can mail your offertory to the Parish Office (731 Main St.), drop off to the offertory box in the vestibule of either church during open hours, or sign up for Online Giving to make a recurring or one-time donation at https://www.saintjohnboscobranford.org/onlinegiving.
WELCOME TO ST. JOHN BOSCO PARISH
On June 29, 2017 the three Catholic parishes of Branford (St. Mary, St. Therese, and St. Elizabeth) were united into one parish named St. John Bosco Parish. This new, united parish will have the use of two church buildings: St. Mary Church and St. Therese Church. While St. Elizabeth Church will no longer have any regularly scheduled Masses, the parish family of St. Elizabeth will be a vital part of the new parish of St. John Bosco. We look forward to all the opportunities this merger will provide as our churches join together to form a more vibrant and prayerful Catholic community here in Branford.
We are excited to welcome the patronage and guidance of St. John Bosco into the Branford Catholic community. If you would like to know more about our new name and the patron saint of our new, united parish, CLICK HERE to find information about his life and service in the Church.
Please note that funerals must abide by current health regulations -- wearing of face masks, social distancing, and 125-person limit in the church.
How to Watch Daily Mass
The television Mass is broadcast seven days a week at 10:00 AM on WCCT-TV (WB20) and WCTX-TV (MyTV9). It can also be seen Saturday and Sunday at 5:00 AM on WCCT-TV. The Mass can also be found streaming live at these times on http://www.ortv.org/streaming/streaming.htm.
BOSCOnnect
St. John Bosco is introducing a new outreach program called BOSCOnnect, in an effort to keep "connected" to parishioners during these trying times of the pandemic - especially the isolated, the elderly, and those without families in the area.
If you or someone you know would like to be included in this program by receiving a weekly phone call and/or being assisted with basic needs, please email [email protected] or call 203-488-1607, ext. 10.
Across the Archdiocese, some parishes have reported email scams which appear to come from the Pastor asking for money. At quick glance the email resembles a valid email address but in fact it is not. These email phishing scams falsely identify themselves as the pastor of the parish and may even reference his actual name. Under no circumstances do parishes or pastors ask for donations in this way and reference buying gift cards, wire transfers, or Bitcoin.
Parishioners in Branford have reported getting emails and even text messages from people appearing to be Fr. Keefe or Fr. Glen, asking for donations of gift cards. THIS IS A SCAM. If you have responded to any of these messages, consider changing your email passwords to ensure your own account safety. CLICK HERE to download a document "How to Tell if an Email is a Scam" to help you understand how to determine if an email is legitimate in any situation.
Promise to Protect
Please visit https://promise.archdioceseofhartford.org/, the Archdiocese of Hartford's website dedicated solely to responding to the sexual abuse crisis within the Church. Read the Archbishop's statements, watch video messages, find resources for the Office of Safe Environment and Victim Assistance and Reporting, and download prayers.
On June 29, 2017 the three Catholic parishes of Branford (St. Mary, St. Therese, and St. Elizabeth) were united into one parish named St. John Bosco Parish. This new, united parish will have the use of two church buildings: St. Mary Church and St. Therese Church. While St. Elizabeth Church will no longer have any regularly scheduled Masses, the parish family of St. Elizabeth will be a vital part of the new parish of St. John Bosco. We look forward to all the opportunities this merger will provide as our churches join together to form a more vibrant and prayerful Catholic community here in Branford.
We are excited to welcome the patronage and guidance of 
Across the Archdiocese, some parishes have reported email scams which appear to come from the Pastor asking for money. At quick glance the email resembles a valid email address but in fact it is not. These email phishing scams falsely identify themselves as the pastor of the parish and may even reference his actual name. Under no circumstances do parishes or pastors ask for donations in this way and reference buying gift cards, wire transfers, or Bitcoin.