The switch from normal life to quarantine life was rough on all of us, for a lot of different reasons. Our school lives, our personal lives, and some of our jobs were wildly altered, if not put on hold entirely. Businesses floundered, parents panicked as they had to figure out how to homeschool their children, and many of us had to worry about where the next paycheck would come from. Life as we knew it changed- and this was no different for most of our religious lives.
However, the transition from in-person religious services to remote ones was actually pretty smooth in my small town of North Ridgeville, Ohio. My parish leaders went out of their way to make sure that everyone stayed engaged with their faith and connected to the Church community. Particularly for the teens at the church, those of us who had previously been in the Church Youth Group, there were a lot of online events and group activities planned and advertised online, so that we might continue to live out our Faith, and remain in the Catholic Community. All things considered, my parish (Saint Peter’s) really handled it like a bunch of champs.
They continued to hold church services, which you could watch live or after the fact, and the sermons delivered were so encouraging and motivational. I think that the pastors did some of their best work while we were in quarantine. They even provided something called “spiritual communion”, a specific prayer that expresses one's desire to receive the Eucharist. If one performs the prayer with sincerity in their heart, special blessings and graces would be bestowed upon them, much like in the actual act of receiving the Eucharist.
They also provided frequent drive-thru confessions, which consisted of making the sacrament of reconciliation with one of the pastors through your open window, right in the parking lot of the church. They also posted videos of the monstrance, displaying the Eucharist during Adoration.
Some of the activities planned for the teens at our parish were lowkey things; a weekly discussion around a specific religious theme, followed by a game or two of Mafia over zoom. We all got really creative and made some backgrounds for these events. A couple of people even designed their own grave stone so that if/when they were killed by the mafia, they would have the appropriate commemorative image ready. Sometimes, even the pastors would join! It was a nice way to have a real, relaxed discussion about the state of the world, and how to keep in touch with one’s Faith during these troubled times.
Some of the activities were more serious and traditionally centered. For example, our Youth Minister introduced us to a workshop on the topic of Theology of the Body, which was hosted on Facebook in the form of a series of instructional videos on different topics under the general category of Theology of the Body.
When we were all given clearance to return back to religious services, the church continued to take it all very seriously. They cordoned off every other pew to encourage social distancing, had ushers at the ready to guide people to seating that offered six feet of space between each family. They provided hand sanitizer at the door, as well as plenty of face masks, which they required everyone to wear at all times within the church doors. Singing was prohibited, to prevent people from getting out of breath and feeling the need to take off their masks, and the temperature was closely monitored to avoid making people want to remove their masks due to the heat. After each church service, they had very clear instructions on how to exit the church, to avoid any rough situations or breaches in social distancing codes, and then a trained team would thoroughly clean everything before the next service. In addition to all of this care that they took for everyone who attended in-person services, they also continued to live stream each mass and record it all to be watched later on for anyone who had to stay home due to illness, chose to stay home to avoid contamination, or just couldn’t make it for any other reason.
When Church services resumed in person, so did Youth Group meetings! They were mostly outdoors, as the gatherings usually consisted of more than 10 people, and adhered to strict social distancing rules. They hosted some nice bonfires, as well as some projected movie nights. They even threw a nice little going away party for our pastor, Father Andrew, who was being transferred to another Church.
I also happen to know that the school affiliated with the Church just returned to in person classes, and they’re handling it quite well!
So, all in all, Saint Peter’s Parish did a really good job of staying connected with their community while also maintaining the COVID-19 related requirements at the time. They provided a supportive community where you could stay in touch with your Faith without ever actually entering the church doors- until we could! This isn’t to say that every Roman Catholic Parish was exactly like this, but I think ours did a pretty good job.
Being Catholic is a very important part of my identity and values, thus praying daily and going to church weekly is a part of what makes my life my life. Altar serving and Eucharistic ministry are just two of my duties as a parishioner at my Cathedral, and yet I have not been able to do either since March, which truly makes me heartbroken. Not only do I feel obligated to serve in one way or another at my church, but I want to. I have felt a disconnect from my Catholic community since this pandemic started. It is strange not standing in Mass with my parents and fellow Catholics singing, worshipping, and receiving the Host. It is strange not walking out of Mass and shaking Father Frank’s hand, thanking him for his homily. It is strange not going out to dinner after 5:00 pm Mass with some of the other members of the church. The sense of community has completely dissipated.
My parish has worked extremely hard to create a platform where members of the church can watch livestream and watch pre-recorded mass. They also have specific prayer services and ministry meetings that can be attended by joining a Zoom call. And while I have tried my best to engage in many of these offerings, I haven’t had much luck connecting with God like I used to in the church setting. It is difficult to attend Mass in my bedroom and sit through such a sacred hour at my desk chair. It feels wrong to me. I also know that I am not alone. The priest at my church confessed in one homily how lonely he felt celebrating Mass in an empty Cathedral and how despite the many efforts he put forth, the community will never feel the same on a digital platform as it does in normal ideal real-life circumstances.
I live in Atlanta, and the state of Georgia was one of the earliest states to lift the stay at home orders, and gathering restrictions, thus as soon as the gathering restrictions were lifted I expected to go back to church. However, I haven’t been able to. My church is practicing social distancing by limiting the number of open pews, and requiring the parishioners to make reservations for Mass. There are thousands of parishioners at my church and only about one hundred seats available in each live Mass, thus it is extremely difficult to get a seat when reservations open. According to a newsletter from my church, reservations for Mass fill up within 30 seconds of its electronic opening, which I believe speaks volumes about Christ the King Cathedral. To me, this suggests that so many of my fellow Catholics are eager to rejoin the close-knit community and reconnect altogether. It also suggests that, just like me, my fellow Catholics miss attending live Mass too.
Although I have had no success in reserving a seat in Mass, I have gone to confession. By nature, confession is pretty socially distanced to begin with. I sit on one side of a screen/curtain and the priest sits on the other side. Going to confession was single handedly the best decision I have made religiously since the pandemic began. I immediately felt reconnected with my church, community, and God after going. I was able to explain everything that was on my mind to the priest and he was able to give me specific advice and prayers to help me during this uncertain time. It felt great to physically be back in my Cathedral too. While I know there is still so much progress to be had, my Church has made great effort to maintain the feeling of community as much as possible, and reopening confession was a great decision.
