Friday, May 15th, 2020:
After consultation with numerous persons in leadership roles in the Tucson Diocese, along with attention given to the medical and scientific community, Bishop Edward Weisenburger released a gradual plan to reopen parishes for worship.
While
details for St. Elizabeth Ann Seton's opening will be forthcoming, the general plan from the Bishop includes:
- Indefinitely suspending the Sunday Mass Obligation.
- The decision to return to the public celebrations of our faith during this time of pandemic should not be made casually or lightly by anyone
- The Sunday Mass obligation has been suspended indefinitely for all Catholics living in or visiting the Tucson Diocese.·
- No one is required to return to receive Holy Communion or return to in-person Masses at this time
- Those age 65 or older, as well as anyone with a chronic health condition, are strongly urged to remain at home and not come onto church premises.
- Anyone feeling ill in any way is urged, in the strongest sense, to remain at home.
- Distribution of Holy Communion outside on Ascension weekend (May 23/24) after streaming a Mass service held privately (closed to public).
- Parishes may begin public Masses as early as Pentecost
- To allow for social distancing rules Masses may be spread over Friday through Monday.
- Pastors must certify to the Bishop that protocols will be in place.
- Those protocols pertain to social distancing ( outdoors and indoors) at our churches,
- limitations on numbers present for a Mass
- proper cleaning of church facilities
- the use of face masks, hand sanitizers,
- certain ways in which the Mass may/may not be celebrated
For more details and to
view the full statement, click here