Week Nine: Archbishop’s Pastoral Parish visits
Fr Mick Burke with Sr Aileen Wailes rsm
Catherine and Dennis Byrnes from Gunning
St Augustine Parish, Yass
During the final week of the Archbishop’s Pastoral visits, Archbishop Christopher joined St Augustine’s parishioners in Yass to hear how they had coped with the pandemic. Although many parishioners were unable to attend, those who were there enjoyed chatting to the Archbishop and sharing their ‘COVID’ experiences.
Gunning was also represented. Parishioners shared with Archbishop Christopher about their online parish prayer gatherings and how most masses were carried out electronically by zoom.
Parishioners kept in touch by telephoning each other during “lockdown,” which many said was reassuring and had made isolation easier to cope with. Several parishioners voiced their disappointment about not being able to visit family members while they were in the hospital and being unable to attend funerals.
Similar to many small towns within the Archdiocese, Yass have rallied, coming out of the other side with hope and a stronger faith.