Looking back at the weekly messages of Father Paul Counce, first published in The Carpenter, our weekly Parish Bulletin
Published: September 06, 2020
Last week’s weather certainly inspired all manner of feelings within me. Was it the same for you? On the one hand, there was great relief and thanksgiving that we in the Baton Rouge area escaped the destruction of hurricane winds and flooding. Yet the southwestern part of the State, around Lake Charles, was devastated. The pictures and stories of such total ruin were overwhelming. Really, our neighbors there are in shock now, and are only just coming to grips with the long road to recovery. It’s also likely the coronavirus will “spike” a bit in affected areas, causing more death and tragedy. Like you I grieve for them.
This is why Bishop Duca so promptly established the Hurricane Laura Relief Fund, and we urge you to give generously to it. The easiest way to do this to go to either the diocesan website at http://diobr.org or the Catholic Charities’ website at http://ccdiobr.org and donate online. But we’ll leave the special baskets for the HLRF out in the church for some time in case you’d like to make your donation here. Place them in an envelope marked Hurricane Laura Relief Fund and return it to the Parish Office or place them into the collection basket this weekend. Or, if you are from another parish or can’t come due to distance or the Covid-19 pandemic, mail it to us at 412 North Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70802-5496. Let us know who you are and where you are from!
Finally on this subject, several people have asked if they might donate “other things,” like food, bedding and dry goods, clothing, etc.? The word I’ve gotten from the folks at Catholic Charities right now is “no”: there’s no good way to store and even identify recipients and distribute these things right now.
But, if we’re careful, what is very useful are gift cards, especially those like Visa and MasterCard gift cards that can be spent anywhere. And those offered by national chains such as Wal-Mart, Target, Shell or Exxon stations, Lowe's and Home Depot and so forth are useful too. Denominations of $50 to $100 per card are the best. Even while just assessing damage and arranging for the more “big ticket” items that will be needed, the clergy and Catholic Charities staff and other Church workers are able to distribute this kind of thing easily, and directly to those in need. We will also be sending some of these gift cards directly to the parish priests of the affected areas, to assist them in putting their parish facilities back together.
I just say “be careful,” if you wish to do this, since such things are like cash. Just like you never send cash through the mails, you should only hand-deliver gift cards to the Parish Office or put them inside an envelope in our collection baskets. We will pass them on immediately, just as we’re doing for the funds received.
It’s heartening, too, that attendance at Mass is steadily climbing. While we all should continue to be careful not to catch or pass on the coronavirus – and I’ll never question anyone who wishes to be super-cautious – here at the Cathedral we do have the space to “socially distance” rather easily if folks stay cooperative. We also have the opportunity to expand our services a bit, I hope, in the next few months. For instance, I know we’ll offer safe-distanced “coffee and donuts” outside under the breezeways and on the plaza once the weather turns cooler – I hope you miss this as much as I do! If you have any ideas on how we can build up the Kingdom of Christ while staying safe, please share them!
Yours in Christ Jesus,
Rev. Paul D. Counce
