With the virus raging in the American southwest, public worship has been again suspended with the goal of preventing any additional spread of the disease.
Liturgy
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Federal judge blocks limits de Blasio, Cuomo put on religious gatherings
A Federal judge has ruled that the restrictions on how many people may gather for church services in New York state cannot be enforced as it presently stands as it is far more stricter than the protocols for comparable secular gatherings.
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Bishop Hying says cap on worship size ‘unjust,’ stifles church’s mission
Bishop Donald J. Hying of Madison, Wis., has openly disagreed with local government’s pandemic advisory of limiting the number of congregants at Masses as interfering with “our pastoral mission.”
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Supreme Court rejects appeals to lift restrictions on congregation size
The church had argued that California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s reopening orders violated the Constitution because they placed fewer restrictions on some secular businesses than they did on houses of worship.
Posted inFaith, Faith in Focus
Dear fellow Catholics: As churches reopen, let’s not go back to the old ‘normal’
Did the old “normal” way of doing things exhaust all possibilities for communal celebration? Is that what we want to return to, even if doing so were possible?
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Faith leaders: Protecting human life is priority in reopening churches
The Catholic bishops of Washington state, in a public statement, said that observance of the pandemic protocols in the suspension of Masses was done not out of fear but “out of our deepest respect for human life and health.”
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
L.A. Archdiocese to begin opening churches under detailed safety measures
Archbishop Jose H. Gomez of Los Angeles has announced plans for the reopening of churches within his archdiocese by the first week of June, provided safety protocols are observed.
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Minnesota bishops modify reopening plan to align with governor’s order
The Catholic bishops of Minnesota have begun plans to implement a reopening schedule for public worship in parishes throughout the state.
Posted inFaith, Faith in Focus
Learning to love lay-led liturgies in quarantine (while missing the Mass)
Lay-led liturgies cannot be an adequate substitute for the Mass. Nothing can. But they can help move through these anxiety-ridden times.
Posted inFaith, News
When is church coming back? With no national guidelines, look for a hodgepodge of procedures.
Catholic dioceses throughout the United States are making decisions on their own, resulting in a hodgepodge of procedures and protocols.