What's New
PARISH OFFICE CLOSED TO IN-PERSON VISITORSThe Parish Office will be closed until further notice to in-person visitors and most staff will be working from home. You can still call 203-488-1607 and leave a voicemail or email [email protected] to coordinate routine items such as Mass Cards, Mass Intentions, etc. Please use the following means of contactless drop-off for items such as envelopes, order forms, etc. - clearly marked in an envelope:
All in-person ministry meetings and in-person Faith Formation classes are cancelled until further notice. Please contact the Faith Formation Office for remote learning information. MASSES ARE STILL IN-PERSON, see information below! SUNDAY DISPENSATION EXTENDEDThe dispensation from the Sunday obligation has been EXTENDED through MAY 23, 2021 (Pentecost Sunday) and live-streaming will continue until the dispensation is lifted on our parish Facebook and YouTube channels. Those in high-risk categories are encouraged to continue staying home, even as people begin to return to Mass. We will continue with our temporary Mass schedule below. Please read the Archdiocesan guidelines at https://archdioceseofhartford.org/guidelines-for-opening-churches-for-public-worship-in-the-archdiocese-of-hartford/.
At St. John Bosco Parish, we have resumed the public celebration of weekday Mass. Important things to note:
With any questions, please contact the Parish Office at 203-488-1607 or [email protected].
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 St. Mary BIBLE IN A YEARClick 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! WEATHER CANCELLATION POLICYAs a reminder, during the winter months our 7:30 AM Daily Mass at St. Mary will not be celebrated on those weekdays when inclement weather forces the closing, delay, or remote learning of Branford Public Schools. We feel that this is the best way to ensure everyone’s safety. Please watch news Channels 3, 4, or 8 for the following information: Branford Schools CLOSED / DELAYED / REMOTE *If you do not see a notification, Mass is STILL scheduled! You can sign up for text notifications sent directly to your phone at www.nbcconnecticut.com/weather/school-closings/, and we will always also send out an alert through our Evangelus and Parish App system as well. Sign up at eva.us/johnbosco. 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!Per the diocese, during this time parishioners who are absent from Mass are urged to make alternate provision for their weekly contributions since parishes depend on them for operation. Mail your offertory to the Parish Office (731 Main St), drop off to the offertory box in the vestibule of each 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
|
UPCOMING MASS
LAST WEEK'S MASS
THE JOY OF CHRISTMAS CONCERT
RECENT MASS: CHRISTMAS DAY
Recent Events
Jorge's Musical Meditations
#BoscoStrong Christmas 2020
Upcoming Funerals
Joseph Salatto - Sat, January 23 @ 10:00 a.m. at St. Mary
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.
Find Us On Social Media!
ST. JOHN BOSCO PARISH
www.youtube.com/saintjohnboscobranford St. John Bosco LifeTeen Instagram ARCHDIOCESE OF HARTFORD |
Visit www.growandgo.com to see videos from the Synod!
Recent Scam Emails
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.