St. Mary's, Aurora, NE

Confessions are offered 45 minutes before Mass and by appointment

The Holy Rosary is prayed 15 minutes before Mass at both parishes.

The month of February is dedicated to the Holy Family. The special devotion which proposes the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph as the model of virtue of all Christian households began in the 17th century. It started almost simultaneously in Canada and France: the Association of the Holy Family was founded in Montreal in 1663, and by the Daughters of the Holy Family in Paris in 1674. This devotion soon spread and in 1893 Leo XIII expressed his approval of a feast under this title and himself composed part of the Office. On account of the flight into Egypt this feast has been observed by the Copts from early times. The feast was welcomed by succeeding Pontiffs as an efficacious means for bringing home to the Christian people the example of the Holy Family at Nazareth, and by the restoration of the true spirit of family life, stemming, in some measure, the evils of present-day society.

In the words of His Holiness Pope Leo XIII, "Nothing truly can be more salutary or efficacious for Christian families to meditate upon than the example of this Holy Family, which embraces the perfection and completeness of all domestic virtues." 

St. Mary Catholic Church 1420 9th St │ P.O. Box 291 Aurora, NE 68818 Rectory: (402)694-3427 stmarysaurora@gmail.com www.stmarysaurora.org

St. Joseph Catholic Church 209 N Derby, Giltner, NE 68841 P.O. Box 291, Aurora, NE 68818      Rectory: (402)694-3427 stmarysaurora@gmail.com www.stmarysaurora.org

• November, 2018—Bulletin notes in my “From the Pastor” column; changing the order to be St. Joseph’s first on Sundays and St. Mary’s second was strongly opposed
• Later November, 2018—Bulletin notes reflected opposition to changing order of Masses to keeping the current order but adding a half hour of gap time
• Early December, 2018—A parish survey was given to both parishes at all Masses
• Mid-December, 2018—Results of the survey were printed in my “From the Pastor” column and another pulpit announcement was made
   

As 2019 unfolded, I felt unable to move forward on a final decision, partly because I had not reported the results of the parish survey clearly.  Allow me here to re-report the results.  St. Joseph’s members indicated by a margin of 21-2 to keep the St. Joseph’s Mass at 10:30, while St. Mary’s members indicated by a margin of 80-28 to keep the St. Mary’s Mass at 8:30.  You may remember the survey offered a third option, which was the times changing to 8:15 at St. Mary’s and 10:45 at St. Joseph’s.  This third option was marked by 10 members of St. Mary’s and by zero members of St. Joseph’s.  My analysis of the survey showed me that St. Joseph’s had a heavier-weighted percentage of members wanting to keep their Mass time when compared to St. Mary’s for keeping their Mass time.  St. Joseph’s wanted 10:30 Mass at a 21 to 2 ratio whereas St. Mary’s wanted 8:30 Mass at an 80 to 28 ratio.  On the other hand, St. Mary’s members indicated changing their Mass time (even if not desiring it) by a ratio of 38 to 80 (28 willing to move Mass to 8:00 plus 10 willing to move to 8:15), whereas St. Joseph’s indicated changing their Mass time (even if not desiring it) by a ratio of 2 to 21 (two members willing to move to 11:00 versus 21 wanting to remain at 10:30).
The Mass-change item was on the St. Mary Church agenda of our Parish Council on January 10^th.  The St. Mary’s Parish Council meeting entertained two motions for advising me on the Mass times.  The first motion of St. Mary’s Mass at 8:30 and St. Joseph’s at 11:00 failed in discussion.  The second motion, passed unanimously, was to adjust each parish Mass time by 15 minutes, moving St. Mary’s to 8:15 and St. Joseph’s to 10:45.  About a week later, I reported this action of St. Mary’s to the St. Joseph’s leadership council members.  From each parish, my conclusive sense is that people want me to make a decision, one that helps my health.
              Here is a snapshot of how my Sunday mornings look.  The St. Mary’s Mass lasts about an hour.  I greet people, change out of my vestments, and arrive back in the rectory around 9:45 or 9:50.  I pause for a time, including eating a little snack.  I drive out of my garage around 10:00, give or take five minutes.  My arrival at St. Joseph’s is around 10:15 to 10:20.   Then, I either begin Mass at precisely 10:30, or I spend a few minutes in the confessional to offer the Sacrament, and begin Mass late.  I could see that potential penitents may neglect Confession for fear they are delaying the Mass. 
              Bishop Conley communicated last Fall that offering Confessions on Sundays is of the utmost importance.  By failing regularly to offer Confessions to St. Joseph’s parishioners, my conscience is greatly troubled.  Some have told me, and they are correct, that Mass can be celebrated shorter than my average timespan.  However, a passage in our 1996 Diocesan Synod states that “Masses on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation must be scheduled in such a way that sufficient time is allowed for the prayerful and reflective celebration of the Eucharist.”  For me, this equals about an hour.  Some may be concerned that Mass times are not usually begun on the quarter hour, like 8:15 and 10:45.  However, I feel that by implementing these quarter-hour beginning times, their uniqueness will make them memorable.    
On the First Sunday of Lent, March 10^th, Mass times will change to 8:15 in St. Mary’s and 10:45 in St. Joseph’s, with Saturday Mass remaining at 5:00 in St. Mary’s.  I know it will be a sacrifice; I appreciate and love you for prayerfully accepting this change.  Thank you.

You can find Father Grell's Pilgrimage Interview on the "Get Informed" tab.  Then click on "From the Pastor".  The Link is on the left side bar of the screen.  Click on the Title and find Episode 81 towards the bottom of that web page when it comes up.  God Bless!