Patty Larger, pastoral associate at St. Joseph/St. Raphael Catholic Parish in Springfield said “We feel very strongly that we don’t just live for ourselves we live in a community. We need to consider the needs of others.”
St. Joseph/St. Raphael Catholic Parish is making decisions based on the Archdiocese.
“In an abundance of caution,” Larger said all non-sacramental events are canceled including Bible study and the Stations of the Cross.
During Mass, there will be no holy water or holding hands, Larger said. There will be communion, but distributors will properly wash hands prior.
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“People are asked if they have a compromised immune system to not come to Mass for these three weeks,” Larger said.
This comes after the Catholic Church told its members in Ohio to reconsider going to Mass for the next three weeks.
The Catholic Conference of Ohio, the official representative of the Catholic Church in public matters affecting the Church and general welfare of the citizens of Ohio, released a statement Thursday evening stating that even though religious gatherings are excluded from the order, this decision was made for the “common good and the physical as well as spiritual well-being of all the people of Ohio.”
“Out of charity and concern for our brothers and sisters in Christ, we encourage all the faithful, in particular those who are sick, experiencing symptoms of illness, or are at risk of illness seriously to consider refraining from Mass attendance,” the statement said.
Other churches like the Covenant Presbyterian Church in Springfield are taking the same precautions by not passing the offering plate, doing the Passing of the Peace, or having communion and coffee hour - those events are suspended for now, Amiee Riley, executive administrative secretary at Covenant Presbyterian Church said.
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“Our congregation median age is 65, so we’re just trying to do the best we can to protect the older people here,” Riley said.
She said people in attendance will be told to stagger pews and stay several feet away from each other.
“We have a safety committee and they are continually, with the pastor, monitoring the situation,” Riley said.
Online components have been discussed if concerns are heightened.
Sending the sermon out to the congregation or having the pastor do a service from home and posting it online are two options Covenant Presbyterian Church has if needed.
St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Springfield said they do not have the tools necessary to hold their services online.
“We plan on staying open and continuing our weekly ministries,” Pastor John Pollock at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church said. “We are telling people to use their best judgment.”
Pollock added, “I don’t think that would be a very good witness of the church to cancel because it would be telling the outside world we don’t have faith in God we proclaim to believe in. We will continue our witness in the community, take precautions, and do a lot of praying.”
Some churches have cancelled Sunday services as a precaution due to the potential exposure to the coronavirus including Champion City Church in Springfield.
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