There will be a short service of Holy Communion at 7.15 am this Ash Wednesday, March 2nd, and each Wednesday in Lent. This is in addition to the regular midweek Wednesday communion service at 11 am.
 These Wednesday services, along with the 7 pm service on Sunday evening, will now  return to the chancel.  Twenty chairs will be available there at one metre apart.  This is usually sufficient to accommodate the numbers who attend those services. 
 If you arrive with someone from the same household please feel free to pull the chairs closer together! 
 At all communion services the rector will continue to bring communion to you in both kinds as has been his recent practice.  If you feel nervous or uncomfortable about sitting in the more confined area of the chancel please feel free to sit anywhere in the body of the church. 
 Meanwhile, we ask that you continue to wear a mask while you are in the church building.

Our “Kidszone” has been reinstated at the back of the church, including the tables, chairs, books, and toys that had been there prior to March 2020.  Each week there will be a variety of colouring sheets available that reflect the theme in the gospel reading of the day.  There will also be an activity sheet for older children. If parents feel comfortable about bringing their children back to church they will be very welcome.

The updated advice from the Department of the Taoiseach, forwarded to clergy by the Archbishop’s Office, suggests “that it may be helpful for each Place of Worship/Community to implement a risk assessment to ascertain what they are comfortable with and what best suits their congregation as a result of the lifting of restrictions. Continuation of some protective measures may be preferred, for an interim period, to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the vulnerable or anxious members of the congregation”. 

With the above in mind the following will apply at St Paul’s until further notice:

• Please continue to wear a mask while inside the church building and use the hand sanitisers provided.
• If you are wearing your mask properly i.e., it covers your nose and mouth, you may sing
• Social distancing and the one-way entry/exit system are no longer in operation.  You are free to sit where you like and exit the building as you choose.
• The prayer books and hymn books will be reintroduced for use whenever possible to reduce unnecessary printing of single use service sheets.
• Parish Communion will be reintroduced at 10.30 am on the fourth Sunday of each month.
• At all communion services you are asked to remain in your pew and the bread and wine will be brought to you as has been recent practice.
• Please always exercise caution and remain conscious of those around you to ensure that worship remains a safe environment for everyone, particularly those who may be vulnerable or feel anxious.
• Coffee/tea after the 10.30 am Sunday service will continue outside, weather permitting. 
  Gary Dowd

It is too soon to say if after a two-year absence, a summer fair will be possible this year.  Despite the ongoing uncertainly some initial planning is underway.  The proposed date will be Saturday, May 28th.  Mark Finney has kindly agreed to take over as chair of the Parish Fair Committee following the departure of Dominic Galvin.  Mark is anxious to recruit stallholders, helpers, tent riggers etc.  Please email him here to register your interest.  Thank you.

The outdoors event planned for New Year’s Eve will NOT now take place.

Friday, December 31st, New Year’s Eve 11.45 pm 
This event will take place OUTSIDE, so please dress appropriately. People are invited to gather at the main door of the church at 11.45 pm to say a brief liturgical farewell to 2021 and to welcome 2022.  Our parish chimes will ring in the new year.  Who knows we may even sing a verse or two of Auld Lang Syne, socially distanced and with our masks on of course!  This will be followed immediately by some bubbles and nibbles.  All are welcome.

The much-loved service on Christmas Day at 10.30 am inside a packed St Paul’s CANNOT take place under current Covid-19 restrictions, which have reduced the safe capacity of the church to about 120. To try to accommodate everyone who would like to attend church this Christmas, the services listed above will take place over the Christmas weekend. With your cooperation the larger seasonal numbers can be redistributed more evenly and accommodated safely.
Both the 11.30 pm on Christmas Eve and the 8.15 am service on Christmas Day are quieter and more reflective, so you might consider one of these services as an option this Christmas.
If you want to go to one of the two all-age services on Christmas morning, you are asked to attend at 9.45 am if your surname begins with the letter A through to K, and at 10.45 am if your surname begins with the letter L through to Z. Those attending the earlier  service are asked not to linger afterwards as the church must be cleaned and ventilated before the next service.
Both these all-age services will last for approximately 30 minutes and each will be livestreamed on our YouTube channel.
GUIDELINES
Please do everything you can to make sure that everyone who wants to participate in worship at St Pauls’ this Christmas can do so as safely as possible. Remember mask-wearing is mandatory indoors. Arrive in good time prior to your service of choice and wait until called by a steward before you enter the building. Sit where advised by a steward (at least one metre apart from non-family) and leave the church promptly afterwards. If you, or any member of your family is feeling unwell or has recently been advised to limit their close contacts, please do not come to church. If it appears that the capacity limit at your chosen service has been reached, please do not stay. We thank you for making the effort and we apologise if that we were unable to accommodate you. There may be no room in the inn this Christmas either!

Rev Gary Dowd writes:
The much-loved service on Christmas Day at 10.30 am inside a packed St Paul’s CANNOT take place under current Covid-19 restrictions, which have reduced the safe capacity of the church to about 120. To accommodate everyone who would like to attend church this Christmas, the following services will take place over the Christmas weekend. With your cooperation the larger seasonal numbers can be redistributed more evenly and accommodated safely.

Christmas Eve, Friday, December 24th
11.30 pm The First Eucharist of Christmas with Carols (average attendance over last five years, pre Covid, 69)

Christmas Day, Saturday, December 25th
8.15 am Holy Communion (average attendance over the last five years, pre Covid, 25)
9.45 am All Age worship (surnames beginning with A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K)
10.45 am All Age worship (surnames beginning with L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z)

You will see from above that both the 11.30 pm on Christmas Eve and the 8.15 am service on Christmas Day could accommodate substantially more people. They each have their own unique atmosphere. They are quieter and more reflective, so you might consider one of these services as an option this Christmas.
If you want to go to one of the two all-age services on Christmas morning, you are asked to attend at 9.45 am if your surname begins with the letter A through to K, and at 10.45 am if your surname begins with the letter L through to Z. Those attending the earlier  service are asked not to linger afterwards as the church must be cleaned and ventilated before the next service.
Both these all-age services will last for approximately 30 minutes and each will be livestreamed on our YouTube channel.

St Stephen’s Day/the First Sunday of Christmas, December 26th
10.30 am Parish Communion with Carols

While most people probably feel that Christmas is already over by December 26th, it has only just begun!  So you might like to wait until the Parish Communion Service on St Stephen’s Day at 10.30 am. Capacity issues then will be unlikely and the fact that there will be no sermon is a bonus!

GUIDELINES
Please do everything you can to make sure that everyone who wants to participate in worship at St Pauls’ this Christmas can do so as safely as possible. Remember mask-wearing is mandatory indoors. Arrive in good time prior to your service of choice and wait until called by a steward before you enter the building. Sit where advised by a steward (at least one metre apart from non-family) and leave the church promptly afterwards. If you, or any member of your family is feeling unwell or has recently been advised to limit their close contacts, please do not come to church. If it appears that the capacity limit at your chosen service has been reached, please do not stay. We thank you for making the effort and we apologise if that we were unable to accommodate you. There may be no room in the inn this Christmas either!

The Rev Gary Dowd writes:
With escalating numbers of Covid cases and the imposition of new restrictions it is obvious that we are going to have to be flexible in our approach to worship this Advent and Christmas. If possible we want to avoid a repeat of last year when we had no “in-person” services over the festive season. The plan is to move OUTSIDE when possible. 
 There will be a Christingle service OUTSIDE in the grounds of the church and parish centre on Sunday, December12th at 5.30pm. Please dress appropriately! Scarves, woolly hats, Christmas jumpers, winter coats may be required depending on the air temperature. This is a short, informal, hands on, all age service ideal for all the family.
 Christingles are made from an orange decorated with red tape, sweets, and a candle. All the component parts will be supplied. Each element of a Christingle has a special meaning and helps to tell the Christian story.
 On Sunday December 19th, at 5.30pm, rather than the traditional service of nine lessons and carols we will have a less formal singing of carols around the Christmas tree outside, followed by seasonal refreshments.
Be warned as both services are weather dependent they could be cancelled at the last minute! In present circumstances it is very difficult to make plans, more details and updates will  follow.

Coffee/tea will be served after the 10.30am service this Sunday, November 21st, in aid of the Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association, in recognition of all its support for our parishioner Roland Evans who died last September. You can watch Roland talk about the disease in a short film here