New facility for paying Parish and Priest Contributions
Many charities and Church communities have seen a dramatic drop off in their contributions during these months of Covid-19 related restrictions. It seems unlikely that we will be able to have regular public celebrations of Mass for some months and even then the restrictions posed by social distancing will limit the number of people in our churches to about 25% of their capacity. I want to express again my gratitude to so many of our parishioners who have continued to contribute to both our weekly parish collection and the Lenten and Easter Offerings which go to pay my salary. This week we have installed on our website (www.rathdowneyparish.ie) a facility which will allow parishioners to pay their parish and priest related contributions directly without using cash or envelopes. The process is very secure, straightforward, and hopefully simple to use. It allows you to pay a once off amount or a weekly/monthly contribution indicating which collection you are contributing to. For those holding parish envelopes it is important that you include the number of your envelope when making a payment. This allows us to issue you with a receipt and record your contribution for the Charity Cash Back scheme.
From time to time I am asked by people from outside the parish, or parishioners who have not received envelopes, about contributing to the parish. This facility will allow anyone who wishes to make a contribution to do so in a simple and safe manner. When booking an anniversary or months mind mass or indeed any other situation which involves a payment or contribution you can now use the donate button on the website.
I really hope you will consider using this new facility and if you have any questions about how it works feel free to call me or the Parish Office. The Office is not officially opened during this time, but Darina or Maureen are there for a period of time on most weekdays. Thank you for all your support of the parish and me personally during these most challenging days for everyone.
Fr. Martin