Roman Catholic Diocese of Seattle Suspends All Masses
Mar 13, 2020 2:17:35 GMT
Post by Hildegard on Mar 13, 2020 2:17:35 GMT
Roman Catholic Diocese Of Seattle Suspends All Masses As The Coronavirus Spreads
March 12, 2020 by sd
From The New York Times:
Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky. At churches, synagogues and mosques, people have been bumping elbows instead of shaking hands and whisking away communal cups meant for communion.In a dramatic move to slow the spread of the coronavirus in one of the most affected regions of the country, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle suspended all public celebration of Mass, effective immediately, becoming the first Catholic archdiocese in the country to do so.
“This is out of an extreme measure of caution,” the archbishop of Seattle, Paul D. Etienne, said in a video message on Wednesday. “Despite our best efforts, this epidemic is going to continue to spread.” Priests, he said, should continue to privately celebrate the Eucharist each day.
March 12, 2020 by sd
From The New York Times:
Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky. At churches, synagogues and mosques, people have been bumping elbows instead of shaking hands and whisking away communal cups meant for communion.In a dramatic move to slow the spread of the coronavirus in one of the most affected regions of the country, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle suspended all public celebration of Mass, effective immediately, becoming the first Catholic archdiocese in the country to do so.
“This is out of an extreme measure of caution,” the archbishop of Seattle, Paul D. Etienne, said in a video message on Wednesday. “Despite our best efforts, this epidemic is going to continue to spread.” Priests, he said, should continue to privately celebrate the Eucharist each day.
From Seattle to Kentucky, Churches Cancel Religious Services
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle suspended all public Masses, and Kentucky’s governor recommended that the state’s churches cancel services.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle suspended all public Masses, and Kentucky’s governor recommended that the state’s churches cancel services.
Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky. At churches, synagogues and mosques, people have been bumping elbows instead of shaking hands and whisking away communal cups meant for communion.
By Sarah Mervosh and Elizabeth Dias
Published March 11, 2020
Updated March 12, 2020, 9:02 a.m. ET
In a dramatic move to slow the spread of the coronavirus in one of the most affected regions of the country, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle suspended all public celebration of Mass, effective immediately, becoming the first Catholic archdiocese in the country to do so.
“This is out of an extreme measure of caution,” the archbishop of Seattle, Paul D. Etienne, said in a video message on Wednesday. “Despite our best efforts, this epidemic is going to continue to spread.”
Priests, he said, should continue to privately celebrate the Eucharist each day.
It was the most significant example of how the coronavirus is increasingly disrupting religious life across the United States, from a mosque in the Seattle area that canceled traditional Friday prayer services last week to Kentucky, where the governor on Wednesday urged all churches to cancel services.
Also on Wednesday, the Episcopal bishops in Virginia and Washington, D.C., announced that all churches in the dioceses would be closed for two weeks, including the Washington National Cathedral, which has held presidential funerals and is a focal point of Christian life in the capital.
“I am painfully aware of the significance of this change,” Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington wrote in a letter on Wednesday, adding, “We are indeed in uncharted waters — not just as a diocese, but as a country and as a global human family.”
Houses of worship have come under increased scrutiny, as the very things that make them centers for community life and connection — places where large numbers of people gather to pray, take communion together, shake hands and socialize — have become a potential source of fear and infection.
Bishop Budde encouraged worshipers to join the National Cathedral for online services on the next two Sundays. She said that parish schools would be allowed to make their own decisions about whether to close, and that ministries that largely serve people who are hungry or homeless would continue to do so.
“We will err on the side of our compassion, but we want to make sure that our volunteers and all who come to receive those necessary services are safe,” Bishop Budde said at a news conference.
Following the Washington changes, Eugene Sutton, the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, banned priests from distributing wine during communion, reminding parishioners that receiving the bread alone was still considered a full communion.
In Kentucky, Justin Rhorer, the pastor at Restoration Church, a nondenominational community of about 100 people, was among many religious leaders in the state weighing whether to follow the governor’s advice to cancel services, an important weekly ritual for many people in a predominantly Christian state. About 40 percent of Kentuckians surveyed in 2014 said they attended religious services at least once a week, according to the Pew Research Center.
“I know that is a big step,” Gov. Andy Beshear said at a news conference. “I know that some won’t agree with it.”
But he added: “I don’t believe whether you go to church during this period of time is a test of faith. I believe God gives us wisdom to protect each other and we should do that.”
Mr. Rhorer ultimately made the decision to abide by the governor’s recommendation, saying, “Church is people and not a service.”
Get an informed guide to the global outbreak with our daily coronavirus newsletter.
In Cynthiana, Ky., where a Walmart worker tested positive for the virus, at least one church was scrambling to shut down its services, Bible study and supper club for the week. Julie Olt, the minister at Cynthiana Presbyterian Church, said she was working out how she could pray with her congregation of about 140 people on Sunday, perhaps through a Facebook Live video or an emailed sermon.
“We don’t know yet,” she said.
But the governor’s recommendation was met with resistance elsewhere. “This is simply one request we cannot honor,” Robert Cunningham, senior pastor at Tates Creek Presbyterian Church in Lexington, wrote in a letter to his congregation on Wednesday, adding, “We actually believe that in times of crises, it is uniquely important for churches to open their doors to those who can attend.”
At churches, synagogues and mosques across the country, people have been taking preventive measures for weeks, bumping elbows instead of shaking hands and whisking away communal cups meant for communion.
At St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City last weekend, a priest did the usual announcement, asking the congregation to “let us offer each other a sign of peace.” “Let’s not,” Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, the Roman Catholic archbishop of New York, quickly interrupted, as people in the pews made peace signs with their fingers rather than reaching out for handshakes or hugs.
This week, a synagogue became the center of a one-mile containment zone in New Rochelle, N.Y., after a lawyer who attends the synagogue tested positive. And an Episcopal church in Fort Worth also announced it would not hold worship services this Sunday, after a rector was hospitalized with the virus.
But with the pace of diagnoses across the country rapidly increasing, officials are quickly shifting attention beyond preliminary precautions and moving to limit all large gatherings.
Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington State on Wednesday announced a prohibition on community gatherings of 250 or more people in the Seattle area, a measure that could have significant ramifications for major houses of worship. A large mosque in the Seattle area canceled its Friday prayer last week, after the outbreak made it seem unwise to bring 1,000 people close together.
Also on Wednesday, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that the public would not be allowed to attend a major conference in Salt Lake City in April, an event that normally draws thousands of people. Most church members were being asked to tune in online instead.
The recommendation in Kentucky could have a profound impact in a state where religion is deeply ingrained.
“Faith is very important to me,” Mr. Beshear said at the news conference on Wednesday, announcing that an annual governor’s prayer breakfast had been canceled. “But the life and health of our people is more — just as — important.”
In a dramatic move to slow the spread of the coronavirus in one of the most affected regions of the country, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle suspended all public celebration of Mass, effective immediately, becoming the first Catholic archdiocese in the country to do so.
“This is out of an extreme measure of caution,” the archbishop of Seattle, Paul D. Etienne, said in a video message on Wednesday. “Despite our best efforts, this epidemic is going to continue to spread.”
Priests, he said, should continue to privately celebrate the Eucharist each day.
It was the most significant example of how the coronavirus is increasingly disrupting religious life across the United States, from a mosque in the Seattle area that canceled traditional Friday prayer services last week to Kentucky, where the governor on Wednesday urged all churches to cancel services.
Also on Wednesday, the Episcopal bishops in Virginia and Washington, D.C., announced that all churches in the dioceses would be closed for two weeks, including the Washington National Cathedral, which has held presidential funerals and is a focal point of Christian life in the capital.
“I am painfully aware of the significance of this change,” Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington wrote in a letter on Wednesday, adding, “We are indeed in uncharted waters — not just as a diocese, but as a country and as a global human family.”
Houses of worship have come under increased scrutiny, as the very things that make them centers for community life and connection — places where large numbers of people gather to pray, take communion together, shake hands and socialize — have become a potential source of fear and infection.
Bishop Budde encouraged worshipers to join the National Cathedral for online services on the next two Sundays. She said that parish schools would be allowed to make their own decisions about whether to close, and that ministries that largely serve people who are hungry or homeless would continue to do so.
“We will err on the side of our compassion, but we want to make sure that our volunteers and all who come to receive those necessary services are safe,” Bishop Budde said at a news conference.
Following the Washington changes, Eugene Sutton, the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, banned priests from distributing wine during communion, reminding parishioners that receiving the bread alone was still considered a full communion.
In Kentucky, Justin Rhorer, the pastor at Restoration Church, a nondenominational community of about 100 people, was among many religious leaders in the state weighing whether to follow the governor’s advice to cancel services, an important weekly ritual for many people in a predominantly Christian state. About 40 percent of Kentuckians surveyed in 2014 said they attended religious services at least once a week, according to the Pew Research Center.
“I know that is a big step,” Gov. Andy Beshear said at a news conference. “I know that some won’t agree with it.”
But he added: “I don’t believe whether you go to church during this period of time is a test of faith. I believe God gives us wisdom to protect each other and we should do that.”
Mr. Rhorer ultimately made the decision to abide by the governor’s recommendation, saying, “Church is people and not a service.”
Get an informed guide to the global outbreak with our daily coronavirus newsletter.
In Cynthiana, Ky., where a Walmart worker tested positive for the virus, at least one church was scrambling to shut down its services, Bible study and supper club for the week. Julie Olt, the minister at Cynthiana Presbyterian Church, said she was working out how she could pray with her congregation of about 140 people on Sunday, perhaps through a Facebook Live video or an emailed sermon.
“We don’t know yet,” she said.
But the governor’s recommendation was met with resistance elsewhere. “This is simply one request we cannot honor,” Robert Cunningham, senior pastor at Tates Creek Presbyterian Church in Lexington, wrote in a letter to his congregation on Wednesday, adding, “We actually believe that in times of crises, it is uniquely important for churches to open their doors to those who can attend.”
At churches, synagogues and mosques across the country, people have been taking preventive measures for weeks, bumping elbows instead of shaking hands and whisking away communal cups meant for communion.
At St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City last weekend, a priest did the usual announcement, asking the congregation to “let us offer each other a sign of peace.” “Let’s not,” Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, the Roman Catholic archbishop of New York, quickly interrupted, as people in the pews made peace signs with their fingers rather than reaching out for handshakes or hugs.
This week, a synagogue became the center of a one-mile containment zone in New Rochelle, N.Y., after a lawyer who attends the synagogue tested positive. And an Episcopal church in Fort Worth also announced it would not hold worship services this Sunday, after a rector was hospitalized with the virus.
But with the pace of diagnoses across the country rapidly increasing, officials are quickly shifting attention beyond preliminary precautions and moving to limit all large gatherings.
Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington State on Wednesday announced a prohibition on community gatherings of 250 or more people in the Seattle area, a measure that could have significant ramifications for major houses of worship. A large mosque in the Seattle area canceled its Friday prayer last week, after the outbreak made it seem unwise to bring 1,000 people close together.
Also on Wednesday, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that the public would not be allowed to attend a major conference in Salt Lake City in April, an event that normally draws thousands of people. Most church members were being asked to tune in online instead.
The recommendation in Kentucky could have a profound impact in a state where religion is deeply ingrained.
“Faith is very important to me,” Mr. Beshear said at the news conference on Wednesday, announcing that an annual governor’s prayer breakfast had been canceled. “But the life and health of our people is more — just as — important.”