My dear parishioners, it’s been a great joy to welcome you back in such great numbers already for the celebration of Holy Mass and the Sacrament of Confession. Wonderful to see so many of you again!

Below you will find the timetable for Easter Week up to and including Divine Mercy Sunday. Please note that there is a slight difference to the times when one can book a place by phone, Holy Thursday evening being excluded of course, and an extra half hour of time given for booking opportunities on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings (i.e. 7.00-8.30p.m.). So far the booking system is working smoothly, although a few people have struggled to get through at times, so please have your ‘wishlist’ ready for the times you’d like to book as this will expedite the bookings and allow more people to get through. I will do as I have done this week and publicise (after the bookings have closed on Friday evening) any places that are still available, then you can call me, over the following days on the landline to take one of those places if they are suitable for you. My desire is that as many people as possible, and hopefully all of you, will manage to have access to Holy Mass at some point throughout the week even if everyone cannot be accommodated at the weekend.

Bookings:

Bookings will, for this period, only be taken by phone and must be made exclusively via the landline (01577 863329). Please do not leave a recorded message but only make your booking through direct conversation with me. Bookings will not be accepted by any other means, but you may feel free to book on behalf of others (with their consent) if they are unable to do so themselves. There will be set hours for making bookings and these will be Tuesday 30th & Wednesday 31st, and Friday 2nd from 7.00p.m.-8.30p.m. this week, given that on Holy Thursday I will have Mass during these hours. Please do not phone later than 8.30p.m. for bookings. Please also be aware that others may be trying to contact me at this time, so if you wish to speak to me about other pastoral/personal issues it would be fairer to others trying to book Mass to contact me at a time other than the one allocated for Mass bookings to speak about these things – thank you for your understanding.

The reason for my strictness with this is that I made several double-bookings or omitted bookings the last time these procedures were in place and I do not wish this to happen again for all of our sakes. I would also require that booking be essential, not optional, if you wish to attend Holy Mass, as I do not want to have to ask pass-keepers to turn people away because there is insufficient space to maintain the required social-distancing. All of these measures are necessary for everyone’s well-being and sense of ease whilst in church, not to speak of the smooth running of the booking process.

Numbers & Hygiene:

Numbers will be limited given the smallness of our churches, so that we will be talking only of a few more than 20 places, possibly, at each Mass or liturgical celebration. Hygiene protocols, which must be strictly adhered to, will return as they were previously. Parishioners without an official exemption will be expected to wear face masks… and I imagine that none of this will surprise you.

Timetable (05/04/21 to 11/04/21):

I will not be taking bookings until the evening of Tuesday 30th March (7.00p.m. – 8.30p.m. only) but you might already like to be thinking about when you hope to attend. Please neither be hesitant to book out of concern for preventing others coming , but also be sensitive to the fact that if one books several slots one may be making it difficult for others to attend even once – hopefully we can strike a happy balance.

I am proposing the following timetable from Monday 5th April until Sunday 11th April inclusive:

Monday 5th April – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 7.00p.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 7.00p.m. Mass

Tuesday 6th April – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 7.00p.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 7.00p.m. Mass

Wednesday 7th April – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 10.00a.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 10.00a.m. Mass

Thursday 8th April – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 10.00a.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 10.00a.m. Mass

Friday 9th April – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 10.00a.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 10.00a.m. Mass

Saturday 10th April (ANTICIPATED MASS OF DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY) – Holy Mass in St. Matthew’s, Auchtermuchty, at 3.00p.m.

Confessions in the sacristy after the 3.00p.m. Mass

Saturday 10th April (ANTICIPATED MASS OF DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY) – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 5.00p.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 5.00p.m. Mass

Sunday 11th April (DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY) – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 9.00a.m.

Sunday 11th April (DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY) – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 11.00a.m.

Sunday 11th April (DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY) – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 1.00p.m.

Sunday 11th April – Divine Mercy Devotions with recitation of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and an opportunity for Confession – in St. James’, Kinross, from 3.00-4.00p.m. Holy Communion will be distributed at the end of the devotions for those who have been unable to book a place for Holy Mass this weekend. I will be available to hear Confessions for as long as necessary, even after the 4.00p.m. conclusion of the devotions.

I look forward to the time when we no longer have to make bookings but can come along freely to Holy Mass as we once did. That time may be a distance off at the moment, so for the meantime I am very grateful for your co-operation and understanding. In so many ways we have learnt to accommodate ourselves to the necessary changes brought about by the current situation, whether it be a matter of how we do our shopping, how we interact with our families, etc. Our Church life has been affected in the same way, but this does not mean that we cannot, even with restrictions, have a fruitful and joyful faith-life. Oftentimes periods of struggle and difficulty have engendered great growth and flourishing in the faith lives of individuals and the Church as a whole. Let us pray that the Good Lord will bring spiritual growth and blessings through the struggles we have had to face together.

With every prayer and good wish,

Fr. Martin Pletts

St. James’, Kinross & St. Matthew’s, Auchtermuchty

c/o 5 High Street, Kinross, KY13 8AW

Telephone: 01577 863329

Dear Parishioner,

I’m delighted to be able to welcome you back to Holy Mass and the public celebration of the Sacraments in our churches – it has been a long journey. We still aren’t at the point of a return to normality but I can only imagine that you share my joy at once again being able to gather together as a family of faith to worship the Lord fittingly in the Most Holy Eucharist.

For the present and for the foreseeable future the protocols we have adopted regarding hygiene and social-distancing remain. I thank you for your understanding and co-operation with this. We shall also be maintaining a booking system for places at Holy Mass to ensure fairness and equal opportunity of attendance. Booking details are posted on the parish website: http://www.catholickinross.com. If anyone does not have access to the internet to discover the times available for Masses I encourage you to speak to fellow parishioners who do, just as I encourage them also to assist you in making your bookings.

I hope that you and your loved ones have been keeping well over this period of time, but should you have suffered the loss of any of those nearest and dearest to you let me take this opportunity to offer you my sincere condolences and to assure you of my prayers.

As we move forward together I ask, please, for your continuing support and co-operation, together we will get through these strange times and together, with faith, please God, we will come out on the other side of this stronger and better people. Jesus Christ through His Passion, Death, and Resurrection enables us to see and to trust that even the darkest of times can be transformed into something hopeful and glorious. Such is our faith in Him.

Many have asked about supporting the parish financially (remembering that we depend solely upon your generous contributions to keep going. To this end I provide here our bank details, and encourage you (if you are able) to resume handing in your weekly offerings for the church. (one bank account for both churches – Roman Catholic Diocese of Dunkeld, Sort Code: 83-23-47, Account Number: 00255001). Cheques should be made payable to St. James’ Catholic Church (for both churches). Sincere thanks to those who have been able to continue to contribute while our churches have been closed, your support has enabled us to keep paying the bills and keep up the maintenance of our beautiful wee churches.

Should you find yourself in straitened circumstances and require material support please remember that the parish has a very active Society of St. Vincent de Paul which exists to provide material support in a confidential manner to those who require it. You can speak to me privately about it this kind of assistance if it would be of benefit to you at the present time.

Please, then, now look regularly at the parish website so as to be able to arrange your bookings for Mass and to begin again to establish a more regular and  steady pattern of worship than we have been able to in more recent times. (I suggest having a very quick look throughout the week).

I pray that you have a blessed Holy Week full of graces for you and yours, full of blessings, full of hope. May the peace and blessing of the Almighty God be with you always!

In Christ,

Fr. Martin Pletts

Bookings & places still available:

There are still places available for Holy Mass between now and Easter Sunday (inclusive) if you haven’t already booked your place. Tonight (Friday) is the last opportunity to book for these dates. Call the parish landline: 01577 863329 between 7.00p.m. and 8.00p.m. this evening to make your booking. The parish landline does not accept ‘blocked’ numbers, so if your number is blocked either phone from a mobile or ask someone whose number is not blocked to make the booking for you.

This morning (Friday 26^th) there are 5 places still available for 10.00a.m. Mass if you would like to come along – please give your name and contact details at the door to the steward, please come at least 15 minutes before Holy Mass begins in order to help the smooth allocation of seats.

Sunday 28^th (Kinross) 9.00a.m. – 6 places still available

Sunday 28^th (Kinross) 1.00p.m. – 2 places still available

Monday 29^th (Kinross) 7.00p.m. – 7 places still available

Tuesday 30^th (Kinross) 10.00a.m. – 7 places still available

Wednesday 31^st (Kinross) 10.00a.m. – 5 places still available

Sunday 4^th April (Kinross) 1.00p.m. – 1 place still available

Sunday 4^th April (Kinross) 3.00p.m. – 2 places still available

(each “place” can accommodate either one individual, or a couple in a ‘bubble,’ or even three from the same household/’bubble’)

Saturday 27^th (Auchtermuchty) 3.00p.m. – 10 places still available

Sunday 4^th (Auchtermuchty) 9.00a.m. – 9 places still available

Other than the places mentioned above all other Masses or liturgies are already fully booked (including Holy Thursday and Good Friday).

God bless you, Fr. Martin Pletts

My dear parishioners, I hope you’re all keeping the Faith and keeping well! You are all very much missed. Good news to know that all being equal we should be able to open up again from Friday 26th March for Holy Mass, and in preparation for the most sacred time in the Church’s calendar: Holy Week.

I want to share with you my thoughts about re-opening and the schedule up to and including Holy Week.

Thanks in advance:

I want to express my gratitude, in advance, to all those who will help us to re-open and all who have already done so much to ensure that our churches are hospitable, safe, and friendly environments in which to worship. I am extremely grateful to pass-keepers, cleaners, stewards, organisers, etc. for the hard work they have already put in and will once again put in, to enable us to function as we should – on your behalf and mine I express our indebtedness to them all.

I’d now like to speak to you about the practicalities of it all…

Bookings:

Bookings will, for this period, only be taken by phone and must be made exclusively via the landline (01577 863329). Please do not leave a recorded message but only make your booking through direct conversation with me. Bookings will not be accepted by any other means, but you may feel free to book on behalf of others (with their consent) if they are unable to do so themselves. There will be set hours for making bookings and these will be Tuesday to Friday each week from 7.00p.m.-8.00p.m. (with the exception of Thursday 1^st April when I will have Holy Mass), please do not phone later than 8.00p.m. for bookings. Please also be aware that others may be trying to contact me at this time, so if you wish to speak to me about other pastoral/personal issues it would be fairer to others trying to book Mass to contact me at a time other than the one allocated for Mass bookings to speak about these things – thank you for your understanding.

The reason for my strictness with this is that I made several double-bookings or omitted bookings the last time these procedures were in place and I do not wish this to happen again for all of our sakes. I would also require that booking be essential, not optional, if you wish to attend Holy Mass, as I do not want to have to ask pass-keepers to turn people away because there is insufficient space to maintain the required social-distancing. All of these measures are necessary for everyone’s well-being and sense of ease whilst in church, not to speak of the smooth running of the booking process.

Numbers & Hygiene:

Numbers will be limited given the smallness of our churches, so that we will be talking only of a few more than 20 places, possibly, at each Mass or liturgical celebration. Hygiene protocols, which must be strictly adhered to, will return as they were previously. Parishioners without an official exemption will be expected to wear face masks… and I imagine that none of this will surprise you.

Timetable (26/03/21 to 04/04/21):

I will not be taking bookings until the evening of Tuesday 23rd March (7.00p.m. – 8.00p.m. only) but you might already like to be thinking about when you hope to attend. Please neither be hesitant to book out of concern for preventing others coming , but also be sensitive to the fact that if one books several slots one may be making it difficult for others to attend even once – hopefully we can strike a happy balance.

At the moment, then, I am proposing the following timetable from Friday 26th March until Wednesday 31st March inclusive:

Friday 26th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 10.00a.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 10.00a.m. Mass

Saturday 27th March – Holy Mass in St. Matthew’s, Auchtermuchty, at 3.00p.m.

Confessions in the sacristy after the 3.00p.m. Mass

Saturday 27th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 5.00p.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 5.00p.m. Mass

Sunday 28th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 9.00a.m.

Sunday 28th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 11.00a.m.

Sunday 28th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 1.00p.m.

Monday 29th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 7.00p.m.

Confessions available after Mass each weekday in the church hall.

Tuesday 30th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 10.00a.m.

Wednesday 31st March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 10.00a.m.

Holy Thursday, 1^st April  – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 7.00p.m.

Good Friday, 2^nd April  – The Liturgy of the Passion in St. James’, Kinross, at 3.00p.m.

Holy Saturday, 3^rd April – Office of Readings, Morning Prayer & Prayer During the Day live-streamed via Facebook at 10.00a.m.

Easter Sunday, 4^th April – Holy Mass at 9.00a.m. in St. Matthew’s, Auchtermuchty. Holy Mass at 11.00a.m., and 1.00p.m., and 3.00p.m. in St. James’, Kinross.

I am very much looking forward to opening the churches and to joining with you once more for the celebration of Holy Mass and Confession. It seems such a long time since we were able to come together to worship the Lord as we should. I pray, and would ask you do the same same, please, that very soon we will resume our normal worship free of the restrictions that we have had to get used to this past while. God bless you and yours and let us continue to pray for each other,

With every blessing,

Fr. Martin Pletts

My dear parishioners, I hope you’re all keeping the Faith and keeping well! You are all very much missed. Good news to know that all being equal we should be able to open up again from Friday 26th March for Holy Mass, and in preparation for the most sacred time in the Church’s calendar: Holy Week.

I want to share with you my thoughts about re-opening and the schedule up to Holy Week.

Thanks in advance:

I want to express my gratitude, in advance, to all those who will help us to re-open and all who have already done so much to ensure that our churches are hospitable, safe, and friendly environments in which to worship. I am extremely grateful to pass-keepers, cleaners, stewards, organisers, etc. for the hard work they have already put in and will once again put in, to enable us to function as we should – on your behalf and mine I express our indebtedness to them all.

I’d now like to speak to you about the practicalities of it all…

Bookings:

Bookings will, for this period, only be taken by phone and must be made exclusively via the landline (01577 863329). Please do not leave a recorded message but only make your booking through direct conversation with me. Bookings will not be accepted by any other means, but you may feel free to book on behalf of others (with their consent) if they are unable to do so themselves. There will be set hours for making bookings and these will be Tuesday to Friday each week from 7.00p.m.-8.00p.m., please do not phone later than 8.00p.m. for bookings.

The reason for my strictness with this is that I made several double-bookings or omitted bookings the last time these procedures were in place and I do not wish this to happen again for all of our sakes. I would also require that booking be essential, not optional, if you wish to attend Holy Mass, as I do not want to have to ask pass-keepers to turn people away because there is insufficient space to maintain the required social-distancing. All of these measures are necessary for everyone’s well-being and sense of ease whilst in church, not to speak of the smooth running of the booking process.

Numbers & Hygiene:

Numbers will be limited given the smallness of our churches, so that we will be talking only of a few more than 20 places, possibly, at each Mass or liturgical celebration. Hygiene protocols, which must be strictly adhered to, will return as they were previously. Parishioners without an official exemption will be expected to wear face masks… and I imagine that none of this will surprise you.

Proposed Timetable (26/03/21 to 31/03/21):

I will not be taking bookings until the evening of Tuesday 23rd March (7.00p.m. – 8.00p.m. only) but you might already like to be thinking about when you hope to attend. Please neither be hesitant to book out of concern for preventing others coming , but also be sensitive to the fact that if one books several slots one may be making it difficult for others to attend even once – hopefully we can strike a happy balance.

At the moment, then, I am proposing the following timetable from Friday 26th March until Wednesday 31st March inclusive:

Friday 26th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 10.00a.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 10.00a.m. Mass

Saturday 27th March – Holy Mass in St. Matthew’s, Auchtermuchty, at 3.00p.m.

Confessions in the sacristy after the 3.00p.m. Mass

Saturday 27th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 5.00p.m.

Confessions in the church hall after the 5.00p.m. Mass

Sunday 28th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 9.00a.m.

Sunday 28th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 11.00a.m.

Sunday 28th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 1.00p.m.

Monday 29th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 7.00p.m.

Confessions available after Mass each weekday in the church hall.

Tuesday 30th March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 10.00a.m.

Wednesday 31st March – Holy Mass in St. James’, Kinross, at 10.00a.m.

N.b. In due course the schedule for Holy Week will appear here on the parish website. For the sake of practicality the main celebrations for the Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday) will take place in St. James’, Kinross, and hopefully next year, when things return to normality (God willing) St. Matthew’s will have an opportunity to host some of these important liturgical celebrations. Naturally there will be provision in both churches this year for the celebration of Easter Sunday.

I am very much looking forward to opening the churches and to joining with you once more for the celebration of Holy Mass and Confession. It seems such a long time since we were able to come together to worship the Lord as we should. I pray, and would ask you do the same same, please, that very soon we will resume our normal worship free of the restrictions that we have had to get used to this past while. God bless you and yours and let us continue to pray for each other,

With every blessing,

Fr. Martin Pletts

Join us at 10.00a.m. for live-streamed Holy Mass for Laetare Sunday. Click on the link below:

https://youtube.com/user/CatholicApostolic

The following is an excerpt from an email from Bishop Robson to the clergy of the diocese. I offer this for your information. Further clarification will be given in due course…

As many of you will by now realise the First Minister made a Statement today, giving the daily statistics, updating the gradual relaxation of COVID restrictions – especially imparting the good news concerning the reopening of ‘Places of Worship’ for us: our Catholic Churches.

The advice was straightforward but is dependent on the COVID statistics continuing to decline/stabilize.

The Statement contained the following notices relative to us:

Our Churches can re-open for public worship as from Friday, 26th March 2021 (the Friday before Palm Sunday). Thanks be to God we shall be open for Holy Week and Easter.
However, for our Catholic churches, this will mean continuing our current arrangements for entering our churches, registering contact details of attendees, the wearing of masks, the observation of social distancing and the rules concerning the distribution of Holy Communion. These arrangements will continue for the foreseeable future.
The so-called ‘cap’ has been raised to that which we experienced during the First 2020 lockdown i.e., a maximum of 50 worshipers, while still observing social distancing.

Holy Mass will be live-streamed from St. James’ tomorrow at 10.00a.m. if you are able to join us “virtually”. Please click on the link below to be taken to the parish YouTube page where Holy Mass will be aired.

As regards the opening of our churches for public worship, the following was received yesterday from the Diocese, and as you will see the situation still seems uncertain at present…

Dear Mgr, Canon, Father

Following meetings with government officials I can report the following:

• The next official announcement, which should coincide with details about the openings for Easter, will be 16 March. It is possible that we might hear something before then but it will be unofficial rather than part of an official announcement.
• The official line remains that communal worship will resume on 5^th April, however, we have been assured that space will be made for major religious festivals which precede that date, including Holy Week.
• The cap is being looked at and while officials are hopeful that there will be some movement on the cap we can’t know for sure until an announcement is made.
• The desire to exclude children of primary school age from the ‘count’ when communal worship resumes was expressed to officials.
• The desire to resume Baptisms as soon as possible was expressed. The importance of Baptism at Easter was also conveyed.

The link for Holy Mass 07/03/21 : https://youtube.com/user/CatholicApostolic