The initial wave of the COVID plague passed us by relatively unscathed.  We prayed, we were anointed with holy oil and holy water and we put our trust in God.  That was all very good.  Now, with the passing of time, we have grown a little complacent.  But still the plague is with us and still people are getting ill.  Recently we have had a number of people in the parish – both those who were vaccinated and those who weren’t – contract COVID. Whether or not this is truly a life threatening illness or simply another flu bug, still it isn’t pleasant to be sick.  Therefore I’m asking all of you to be considerate and compassionate toward one another. 

1. If you are sick, then don’t come to Church. Call the priests and ask for prayers and whatever else might be helpful.
2. If you think you may have been exposed, consider wearing a mask in public whether or not you were vaccinated. You would not want to be the reason someone else suffers.
3. Masks will not be required in Church, however, consider whether wearing one might be helpful to your neighbor – you might not feel sick, but they might be more vulnerable than you think.
4. We will resume the practice of sprinkling with holy water after liturgy and on Friday evenings when there is not an akathist to the Virgin already scheduled, we will resume the supplicatory prayer service to St, Nikiphoros the Leper.