Mary, Mother of God Church
157 South Triangle Road
Hillsborough, NJ 08844
(908) 874-8220
 

Mass Attendance Guidelines and Procedures for Mary, Mother of God Church (Phases 1 & 2)

General Information — Some Mass times have changed to allow additional time for cleaning/sanitizing between liturgies and to make our environment welcoming, safe, and secure. Daily and Weekend Masses will be offered in the Church and the Mass times have been temporarily adjusted as follows:
Daily Mass — Monday, 7:30 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday 8:30 a.m.
Saturday Vigil Masses — 4:30 p.m. (English), 6:30 p.m. (Spanish) 
Sunday Masses — 7:30 a.m., 9:30 a.m., and 11:30 a.m.

The Masses that will continue to be livestreamed are the following: Mass Attendance — The dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass will remain in effect until further notice. Each individual should assess their personal health situation e.g. whether they are in a vulnerable age or health group, have a chronic illness, etc. before deciding to attend Mass. If you are showing any symptoms of sickness, please stay home. If not attending Mass, the faithful are to keep the Lord's Day holy by some other means such as watching the livestream of a Mass, praying the rosary, reading or reflecting on Sacred Scripture.

Seating — The Church will be opened for seating twenty minutes before the start of each Mass. There will be significantly reduced seating to allow for social distancing so your favorite pew area may not be available.
There will be approximately 120 seats in the Church proper with an additional 42 seats in Holy Spirit  Hall. In the Church, the right and left most pew areas will be reserved primarily for families so they may  sit together. The center pew areas will be used for individuals and couples. We ask that you please wait for an usher to seat you and follow their direction. There will be no seating permitted in the Gathering Space. While waiting to be seated please maintain a six feet distance between other groups or individuals.

Masks — Masks must cover both the mouth and the nose and must be worn at all times, except when consuming Holy Communion, including when responding/singing. Young children are exempt from masks. Parents are to decide whether their child is capable of wearing a mask.

Changes during the Mass — All missalettes and hymnals have been removed in the Church; the primary worship aid for weekend Masses is the slide presentation. There will be no offertory procession of gifts. There will be no handshake at the Sign of Peace. Holy Communion will be the consecrated host and the reception of the Precious Blood is temporarily suspended. Bulletins will be available on a table in the Gathering Space near the exits.

Distribution of Holy Communion — There will be three communion stations; center aisle, choir aisle and baptismal font aisle. Communion will be distributed by a priest or deacon who have pre-sanitized their hands and will be wearing a mask and glasses or goggles. Parishioners are to maintain six feet spacing in the communion lines. In the interest of everyone's safety, we respectfully request that you receive the communion host in the hand. If you find it necessary to receive on the tongue, the priest or deacon will re-sanitize his hands before the next recipient.
For those requiring assistance at the distribution of Holy Communion, please notify an usher when you are seated and the priest or deacon will come to you.
Remove your mask only to consume Holy Communion and immediately put your mask back on. As you exit the communion station, please proceed directly to a Church exit maintaining social distancing. Social congregation in the Gathering Space or parking lot is not permitted.

Chapel Hours: 9:00 am to 4:30 pm. (As of June 15)
 This will be limited to 10 people at a time, we do require you to wear a mask while you are in the Chapel, or anywhere on the Church campus.