{UAH} DEMOCRATS NEED TO DROP THE NONSENSE OF KEEPING THE ECONOMY CLOSED THEY HAVE LOST BOTH THE WAR AND TEH BATTLE ON IT

They are reopening churches slowly. Let's do it safely

by Timothy P. Carney

April 27, 2020 05:45 PM

 

Catholic bishops in three states are allowing public celebrations of Mass, adding extraordinary safeguards in an effort to prevent the spread of the coronavirus at church. This is great news, and we should all hope (and pray) that the churches responsibly reopen, don’t cause outbreaks, and provide a model for the step-by-step reopening of society and the economy.

It is very important to let people back into church as soon as it’s safe. Church attendance is incredibly beneficial to people, especially in the working class and the middle class. Church attendance provides education, moral formation, connection, modeling, volunteer activities, a human-level safety net, role models, friendships, networks, and so much more.

So while folks are right to pine for the “reopening the economy,” we also should look forward to the “reopening of society” — and most of all, the “reopening of church.”

Yet church as normally conducted is also a great place for the coronavirus to spread. Increasingly, it seems that the best way to catch the virus is through prolonged indoor proximity to an infected person. Throw in the singing, the hugging, the handshaking, and, in Catholic Mass, the eating from a single hand and drinking from a common cup, and you can see why many Catholic bishops shut down public Mass before states shut down society and the economy.

 

So the question for people of goodwill is this: Can we safely return people back to church? What would we need to change about church services in order to make them safe? Would churchgoers abide by these new rules?

Four bishops in Montana, Texas, and New Mexico have recently lifted bans on public Mass in their dioceses. That means that parish pastors will be free to hold Mass if they can do so safely.

Different bishops have different guidelines, and different pastors will implement it differently. But for a taste, here’s what Bishop Austin Vetter of Helena, Montana, has required:

“Social distancing of six feet must be maintained and managed — when entering and leaving the church, with seating between nonfamily members and during the Communion procession; provisions need to be made in advance to ensure social distancing at all times; ropes and tape may be used; the invitation to the sign of peace is to be omitted, and no sign of peace offered.”

The “sign of peace” is a part of Mass when folks shake hands with or, in some parishes, hug those nearby.

If my pastor asked me, I’d keep all those rules, and add something like the following:

* Limit attendance to 20% to 25% of normal capacity.
* Allow one household per pew. Skip every other pew.
* Make Mass shorter, and keep windows open.
* No singing.
* Tell the immunocompromised not to come.
* Bar anyone with a fever, a cough, or other symptoms.
* Tell parents not to bring kids who cannot be trusted to social distance.
* Masks should be worn at all times.

How to do Holy Communion safely is its own post.

I’d ask everyone to bring disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer. I’d instruct them all to wash their hands before and after. And of course, I’d tell everyone uncomfortable with attending not to attend. (Catholics ordinarily are required to attend Mass every Sunday, but that requirement is currently suspended, including in the dioceses that are reopening public Mass. That’s eminently sensible.)

Of course, all of the above rules will cause headaches and hurt feelings because congregations will have to control crowds far more than normal. Churches will probably have to hold more services and shorter services, each with a fraction of the ordinary crowd. And still, some people who want to attend might have to stay home. Pastors might have to allocate slots by last name or by lottery.

If surplus demand is a real problem, churches should move outdoors whenever and wherever possible. Many churches, Catholic and protestant, are already holding parking-lot services.

Yes, there would be plenty of unpleasant and suboptimal aspects of a modified church service. But I think it would be better than no church service. And guess what: Reopening anything during this pandemic is going to have to be gradual. We will slowly get back the things we miss, such as parks, schools, playgrounds, pools, fishing holes, diners, in a modified, limited, distanced way.

If we wait until we can have full-hugging-and-singing-packed-house churches, we might be waiting more than a year. It's the same with shopping malls or clothing stores. A gradual reopening is necessary. Churches in these three states hopefully can show us how to do it.

EM         -> { Trump for 2020 }

On the 49^th Parallel          

                 Thé Mulindwas Communication Group
"With Yoweri Museveni, Ssabassajja and Dr. Kiiza Besigye, Uganda is in anarchy"
                    Kuungana Mulindwa Mawasiliano Kikundi
"Pamoja na Yoweri Museveni, Ssabassajja na Dk. Kiiza Besigye, Uganda ni katika machafuko"