CHARLOTTE — Clergy and parishioners in the Diocese of Charlotte are being encouraged to use special precautions during Mass and parish activities to minimize the potential for spreading the COVID-19 coronavirus.
The virus first detected in China last December has been reported in more than 100 countries, including the United States. The illness is considered highly contagious, with symptoms resembling the flu and including fever, dry cough and shortness of breath. As of March 10, more than 113,700 cases and 4,000 deaths have been recorded globally, mostly in China.
The U.S. is seeing minimal coronavirus cases to date and the Charlotte diocese is not aware of infections locally, but the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is advising everyone to follow best-hygiene practices to minimize the possible impact of this emerging public health threat.
Based on guidelines from the CDC, Bishop Peter Jugis is urging clergy to remind parishioners to cover coughs/sneezes and throw away used tissues; clean all “high-touch” surfaces every day; avoid shaking hands, and wash hands often; and not share personal items such as cups and utensils.
In a letter issued Feb. 28, Bishop Jugis also strongly encourages priests not to extend the Sign of Peace, distribute Holy Communion from the chalice, or invite people to shake hands in greeting at Mass or other gatherings. Those who distribute Holy Communion should wash their hands before Mass, and clean their hands again before and after distributing Holy Communion.
Parishioners are also legitimately excused from Mass if they are ill or suspect they have been exposed to the virus. Those who are ill may watch live-streamed Sunday Masses online, Masses broadcast on EWTN (www.ewtn.com), or recorded homilies/Masses offered on parish websites.
Read the full text of Bishop Jugis’ letter.
The CDC expects coronavirus cases to increase in the U.S. in the coming weeks and is asking organizations to begin responsible planning to reduce the likelihood of infection and related disruption.
Precautions are being taken in churches worldwide because of this virus.
— Catholic News Herald. Pictured: A protective mask is seen on a statue of St. Francis Feb. 28, 2020, in San Fiorano, Italy, one of the Italian towns on lockdown due to a coronavirus outbreak. (CNS photo/school teacher Marzio Toniolo, Reuters)
More online:
For additional information regarding the coronavirus, please visit the CDC’s website: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.
Guidelines developed by the USCCB for influenza and liturgy are posted online at: www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/sacred-art-and-music/influenza-and-the-liturgy.cfm.
U.S. dioceses adopt wide-ranging plans to limit spread of coronavirus
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U.S. dioceses adopt wide-ranging plans to limit spread of coronavirus
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Dioceses nationwide are taking precautions to guard against the spread of the coronavirus and reminding parishioners to take commonsense steps related to hygiene in their personal lives.
Among the most common preventative measures being taken are urging reception of holy Communion in the hand, suspension of distribution of the Communion cup and exchanging the sign of peace without physical contact.
Diocesan leaders also asked people who are ill to refrain from attending Mass.
"If you are sick, stay home until you are feeling better," Bishop David A. Zubik of Pittsburgh said in a March 2 announcement to parishioners.
From Charlotte, North Carolina, to Honolulu, diocesan officials were implementing steps recommended by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Divine Worship to limit the potential spread of the illness that by March 3 had reached about 70 countries including the United States. Health officials in the U.S. have confirmed more than 100 cases of the illness in 15 states, including at least nine deaths.
Worldwide by March 3, more than 92,000 cases and more than 3,100 deaths have been attributed to the coronavirus, with most in China, the epicenter of the outbreak.
At the same time, at least one bishop urged calm as people responded to the coronavirus, designated COVID-19 by world health authorities.
"Please encourage your communities during this time of uncertainty to prepare, but not panic," Auxiliary Bishop Joel M. Konzen, administrator of the Archdiocese of Atlanta, said in a Feb. 28 memo. He said precautions preventing the spread of COVID-19 were similar to those to prevent the spread of flu.
In a Feb. 28 letter, Charlotte Bishop Peter J. Jugis urged clergy to remind parishioners to cover coughs and sneezes and throw away used tissues, clean all "high-touch" surfaces daily, avoid shaking hands, wash hands often and not share personal items such as cups and eating utensils.
Like diocesan officials across the U.S., Bishop Jugis encouraged priests not to extend the sign of peace, distribute Communion from the cup or invite people to shake hands in greeting at Mass or other gatherings. Those who distribute holy Communion should wash their hands before Mass and clean their hands again before and after distributing Communion, he said.
Similar precautions were being implemented in the Archdioceses of Washington and the dioceses of Jackson, Mississippi, and Little Rock, Arkansas.
Beyond those steps, the Archdiocese of Miami suggested that parishes empty the holy water fonts at church entrances, and it also is allowing extraordinary ministers of holy Communion who feel uncomfortable in carrying out their ministry to temporarily step down.
Guidelines from the Ohio Department of Health for dealing with contagious illnesses were reviewed in a statement shared with parishes and posted on the Diocese of Cleveland's website March 2.
The diocese's Office for Worship also reminded priests, deacons and extraordinary ministers of holy Communion to continue practicing good hygiene including frequent hand washing.
Archbishop John C. Wester of Santa Fe, New Mexico, updated liturgical practices introduced in January because of the severity of the flu season in Utah. In a March 3 statement, he mandated that holy Communion be received in the hand.
"What is important is that we receive our Blessed Lord in holy Communion," he said. "How we receive, while very personal to the individual communicant, is not crucial. ... Receiving Communion in the hand is every bit as respectful as receiving on the tongue."
At the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Msgr. J. Brian Bransfield, general secretary, March 3 requested in an email to staff that they "refrain, until further notice, from planning any new international travel."
He called on workers who had already purchased tickets for travel to "reconsider the necessity of the trip in consultation with your senior staff supervisor and determine an appropriate plan of action."
Meanwhile, the Diocese of Honolulu in mid-February declined to put in place any restrictions at Mass. However, Father Pascal Abaya, rector of the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in the Hawaiian capital told worshippers the Communion cup would no longer be distributed, a step he called "precautionary" during flu season.
The practice continued during the first week of Lent, a diocesan official confirmed.
— Catholic News Service
Catholic entities worldwide take precautions
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As COVID-19 spreads, Catholic entities worldwide take precautions
Catholic aid agencies are protecting their staff's safety as they increase their worldwide efforts to stop the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19.
Catholic dioceses around the world, too, are following protocols issued by their government health ministries.
Catholic Relief Services, which works in more than 110 countries, is "restricting all but the most mission-critical travel, with contingency operational plans in place should the disease take hold in any of the countries where the organization operates," it said.
The U.S. bishops' international relief and development agency is working "to prevent and mitigate the spread of the deadly virus" while protecting the safety of its staff, it said in a March 3 statement.
CRS suspended its education programs for children in camps in Afghanistan and is now "working with local health agencies to educate those families on preventing infection and distributing 60,000 bars of soap," it said. In Cambodia, it is piloting a work-from-home arrangement.
The agency, part of the Caritas Internationalis network, noted it has vast experience "fighting fast-moving disease outbreaks," citing the reach of its partners in vulnerable and remote communities.
Caritas Internationalis has increased checks on its staff and is distributing surgical masks to people in need in Hong Kong, where two people have died among the 103 people infected. Members of the Caritas network of aid agencies are running risk awareness and hygiene education campaigns in the countries where they work.
More than 3,000 people have died globally from COVID-19, which emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December. The World Health Organization said that, by early March, more than 92,000 infections had been confirmed.
Dioceses around the world took precautions such as recommending that Communion is received only in the hand and that people do not shake hands during the sign of peace at Mass, especially in places frequented by pilgrims.
The French Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes announced that pilgrims were still welcome, but the pools the sick bathe in, hoping for healing, would be closed temporarily.
The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem issued precautionary guidelines to follow during celebration of Masses, noting the local church's "unique situation."
"Thousands of pilgrims from different parts of the world come to the Holy Land to visit the holy sites and churches," the patriarchate said, noting that "in some cases, the pilgrims are also in contact with our local churches and communities."
Its directive said Communion is to be received only in the hand and made the "preventive suggestion" that holy water fonts be emptied, especially in the holy sites and sanctuaries.
The Israeli education ministry told Catholic News Services that 14 students from the Rosary Sisters' High School in East Jerusalem were in self-quarantine following their return from a conference in Genoa, Italy.
The spread of the coronavirus in Europe has intensified, with the majority of cases in Italy; as many as 20 countries on the continent recorded new cases.
The Italian Civil Protection Service said 3,089 people in Italy had the coronavirus as of 6 p.m. March 4. Of those, 107 have died and 276 have recovered. Schools closed in all of Italy March 5-15.
The Archdiocese of Milan suspended all public celebrations of Mass until further notice in compliance with Italian health ministry precautions.
Schools and universities were closed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in Iran, where at least 77 people died and more than 2,300 people were infected. But while holy shrines were disinfected, the sites did not close. Millions of people visit the shrines every year, with many kissing and touching them.
Two men in Iran who defied health warnings could be jailed after videos circulated of them licking holy shrines. In one of the videos, a man is seen at the Masumeh shrine in Qom, saying, "I'm not scared of coronavirus," before licking and kissing the gates.
In their guidelines, Haiti's bishops called for the normal sanitary precautions, but also told people to count on conducting Holy Week and Easter service outside.
Catholics in the Philippines have been asked not to kiss or touch the cross when they venerate it on Good Friday, April 10.
Instead, they should "genuflect or make a profound bow" before the cross during the veneration of the cross, according to guidelines issued Feb. 20 by the Philippine bishops' conference. Three cases of the coronavirus have been documented in the Philippines, with one resulting in death.
The Chinese government temporarily closed all places of worship and banned all group religious activities in efforts to contain the virus' spread.
In mainland China, more than 80,000 people had been infected with the virus, and more than 2,900 had died, according to China's national health commission.
Only three cases of infection have been recorded in Africa -- one in Nigeria, one in Egypt and one in Algeria -- with no deaths. In Mombasa, Kenya, Catholic Archbishop Martin Kivuva led other religious leaders in urging the Kenyan government to begin a citizen training program on prevention and management of the COVID-19.
Ghana's bishops directed all Catholics to receive Communion only in the hand. In a March 2 statement, Archbishop Philip Naameh of Tamale, president of the Ghanaian bishops' conference, encouraged ministers of the Eucharist to wash their hands or use sanitizer before and after distributing Communion.
The bishops also urged parishioners to "avoid handshakes and embracing one another" during the sign of peace.
Caribbean countries are increasingly closing their borders to visitors from areas affected by the coronavirus. The Caribbean has one confirmed case in the Dominican Republic and three in the French overseas territories of St. Barthelemy and St. Martin.
"There is no change to the church's liturgical celebrations" yet, the Archdiocese of Port of Spain said in a March 3 statement from Trinidad, noting that it would provide any assistance needed if an outbreak occurred.
— Bronwen Dachs, Catholic News Service
Vatican takes steps to stop spread of coronavirus
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Preventing pandemic: Vatican takes steps to stop spread of coronavirus
VATICAN CITY— The month of March is usually when tourists flock to the Eternal City after the cold winter months and pilgrims come to pray at many holy sites during the Lenten season.
With news of the growing number of people infected with the novel coronavirus, increasing travel restrictions and the Italian government's order to close all schools, universities and institutes until March 15, places like the Milan cathedral, known as the "Duomo," and the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican are eerily empty.
As of March 4, more than 2,700 people in Italy have contracted the virus, known as COVID-19, while at least 107 people have died since the outbreak began in northern Italy, the Italian health ministry said.
Nevertheless, the delicate balancing act of preventing others from being contaminated while not increasing panic has proven to be a challenge, especially for the Vatican, which receives thousands of visitors each year to its museums, catacombs and churches.
Matteo Alessandrini, a press officer at the Vatican Museums, acknowledged that cancellations by tour groups have caused a significant drop in visitors.
"We don't have a private airport so those who don't come to Rome obviously don't come to the Vatican," Alessandrini told Catholic News Service March 4.
The Vatican Museums, he added, would not release specific data on the decreasing numbers because "it wouldn't make sense to compile statistics right now."
A recent report in the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero stated that the Vatican Museums experienced "an estimated 60% drop in attendance."
However, Alessandrini expressed bewilderment that percentages were "published by several newspapers" without contacting or confirming those numbers with the Vatican Museums' press office.
During the first days of the outbreak, the Pontifical Commission for Sacred Archaeology closed all of Italy's ancient catacombs, citing concerns that the humid conditions and narrow spaces would allow the virus to spread, the Reuters news agency reported Feb. 27.
An official at the pontifical commission told Catholic News Service March 4 that the catacombs will remain closed for the time being, and the office will continue to monitor developments related to the spread of the virus.
The unfortunate timing of Pope Francis' cold, which led to him cancel several meetings as well as his participation in the annual Lenten retreat with members of the Roman Curia, also forced the Vatican to address concerns and hold off the local media from pushing the panic button.
Following a report from Il Messaggero that alleged the pope tested negative for COVID-19, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni released a statement March 3 saying the pope was merely suffering from a cold that was "running its course, without symptoms linked to other pathologies."
Bruni neither confirmed nor denied that the pope was tested for the virus.
While the Vatican health care system has not made public any directives for combatting the virus, the Diocese of Rome announced now-familiar measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in parishes: emptying holy water fonts, omitting the sign of peace and requesting that the faithful receive Communion in the hand.
At St. Peter's Basilica, which follows the vicar for Vatican City and not for the Diocese of Rome, the holy water fonts held up by two 6-feet tall cherubs were emptied, as was the font at the entrance to the sacristy. A statue of St. Peter, venerated by pilgrims by kissing or touching its foot, was cordoned off.
The security line to enter the St. Peter's Basilica, which can sometimes stretch around the square, saw only a smattering of tourists, some donning protective face masks.
"I've never seen anything like this. I never thought it could happen in Italy; it's weird," Mountain Butorac, an American tour guide in Rome, told Catholic News Service March 4.
Like many tour guides, Butorac said most groups that were scheduled to visit Rome with him in March canceled.
"I have friends that are tour guides for the Colosseum and the museums and they've had everything canceled. It was going to be a big month," Butorac told CNS.
With so many groups canceling their trips, Butorac said it was "really a good time to visit" museums, churches and famed edifices, like the Sistine Chapel, which are now more easily accessible.
"You can go to the Vatican Museums now and there will be like 10 people in the Sistine Chapel. People pay a lot of money for that kind of access," he said.
"I actually have a few bookings, though, for later this month, so I guess people see that maybe it's not as bad as some of the media makes it out to be and they're taking advantage of the cheap fares and the cheap hotels," Butorac said.
— Junno Arocho Esteves, Catholic News Service