A: Bishop’s introduction
1.
After much prayer and reflection and
after consultations with my brother bishops in the SACBC and with my advisors
in the College of Consultors and in the Diocesan Pastoral Council executive
committee and in compliance with the regulations of Regulation Gazette No.10177
announced by Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma on 28 May 2020, I am pleased to endorse
these protocols for regulating community worship in our parishes during
lockdown level 3. It is the responsibility of the parish priest in
collaboration with the lay leaders (PPC) to ensure that these regulations
be implemented and adhered to by all Catholics who wish to participate in
community worship in church. Indeed, the priests and lay leaders in the parish
should be leading by example in this regard. But the parish churches must
remain closed if all the safety measures according to these protocols cannot be
implemented by the parish. The return to Church community worship will
require careful management by the priests and local parish leadership when
churches reopen on 1 June 2020 in South Africa. Strict adherence to laws
regarding Covid-19 pandemic at all times and all protocols as prescribed by the
government are to be observed including these Church protocols. The parish
priest in consultation with the PPC has the final decision concerning the
readiness of the parish for community worship at any given time and place in
the parish.
2.
No one must be obliged to attend
worship in church during the pandemic. We wish to make it clear
that physically participating in community worship in church during this
pandemic is a decision for people to make without risking themselves and the
lives of others. Priests and lay leaders should help their parishioners to make
good decisions in this regard. Those regarded to be at high risk of infection
such as the elderly who are over 60 years of age and people with medical
conditions should be told to stay at home. No one must be coerced or forced to
participate in such community worship during this pandemic lockdown. If they
decide not to participate, their decision must be respected.
3.
No church services allowed without
the priest presiding. As from 1 June 2020 in the Diocese of Tzaneen,
only the parish priest or assistant priest is allowed to preside in the
community worship in church. No communion services or other church services
led by lay ministers will be allowed during this lockdown period. The
parish priest must not give permission to any group or community in the parish
that wishes to worship as a group in the church by themselves without the
priest being present. This is to ensure that there is proper accountability to
both the people and the diocese concerning all the safety measures and
procedures which must be implemented in preparation for and during and after
community worship. The parish priest must inform the community leaders about
this prohibition and the reason for this ruling. The diocese and the parish
will not be held responsible for any group or community that breaks this
ruling.
B: The Safety Protocols:
1. Limiting Congregation size
so as to ensure compliance with regulations in terms of the numbers for social
distancing. The government quota of attendees permitted in church for worship
is not more than 50 people. For this reason, the services will need to be
spaced. Sundays and mid-week services can
be arranged, and congregants attend only one service per week. Where more than
one service in a building is required per Sunday, time must be allowed for disinfecting
between services.
2.A register of attendees of
all services needs to be maintained for possible contact tracing. A roster,
possibly alphabetical order, of the congregation needs to be maintained. This Attendance
register with date and time and place of the service must be completed with the
personal details of attendees. A register of all those in attendance should be
kept and archived in the parish for possible contact tracing. All attendees
should be informed about the dangers of COVID -19 and how to prevent it.
3. Church buildings to be ‘safe places’
• Cleaning with detergents of all the buildings must be done before and after
services to thoroughly sanitise the Church for the new congregation. Where more
than one service in the same Church building is required on the same day,
time of at least 30 minutes must be allowed for disinfecting the Church
building between services. Floors and pews/benches/chairs need to be wiped down
before and after services with cloths soaked in disinfectant. • Clean and
disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces. • Make sure that the Church
is well ventilated by opening windows. • Safety bins to be provided with
plastic liners to be easily and safely disposed of after each service. Ensure
that there are sufficient quantities of hand sanitiser (with 70% alcohol
content) available at the entrance and inside the church which all attendees
are required to use and that there are
facilities for the washing of hands with water and soap.
4. Toilets need to be kept hygienic: Ensure
adequate supply of 70% alcohol-based hand sanitisers. • Soap, water, and paper
towels (no cloth towels) must be provided. Even in the most rural of
congregations, sanitising will be required. Ideally, running water and hand
washing with liquid soap ought to be used in this process. Paper hand towels to
be disposed of in a bin with plastic liners to be easily and safely disposed of
after each service.
5. Sacred vessels and the elements.
Priests should take responsibility and be particularly careful in their
preparation of the sacred vessels and the elements to be used in Holy Mass and
hygiene and sanitising must be strictly observed. Do not give this task to
someone else. The presiding priest of the Mass must sanitise before the
service, at the preparation of the elements for the Eucharist and after
receiving Communion. There should be no offertory procession with the elements.
6.
Control of the Entrance.
No
socialising before Mass or service outside of the church. Only one entrance
into the Church shall be used.
6.1 Limiting the numbers (Only 50 people or less if church is small)
Stewards
should be present at the entrance door to control the numbers entering
based on social distancing requirements as per the regulations and also
sanitise the hands of every member coming to and leaving the service.
6.2 Screening of all attendees (No one is allowed in the church without first
having passed the screening evaluation). Stewards at the door will be assisted
by a person who will screen the attendees before they are allowed into the Church.
A
health worker within the congregation would be the ideal person for this task.
Screening of the attendees at the entrance of the church must include the
taking of their temperature so as to ensure the persons do not have any
covid-19 symptoms.
(Note:
People will need to be actively discouraged from attending if they have an infection
of any type. No one with even the slightest symptoms of cold such as sore
throat or cough or is short of breath should attend services. Anyone with close
contact with people who are showing symptoms in the past 14 days should also be
prevented from attending. If any members present with flu-like symptoms or have
been exposed to any person exhibiting such symptoms in the last 14 days, they
must be recommended to consult their family, family physician, or local clinic
or hospital, as appropriate. Those who screen positive will be asked to return
home and to seek medical help and possible COVID-19 testing immediately).
6.3 Another
assistant shall fill in the Register details of each attendee. There
should be no processions into the church. Attendance Register must be properly
dated, and include the following details: the full names, residential address,
cell number and telephone number or email address of the attendee as well as
the contact details of persons living in the same residence as the attendee. The
completed Register must be kept in the records of the parish office
6.4 Mass
or Service time to be one hour only
Reduce
the time of the Mass or service to one hour. The longer people are together in
one place the more they are at risk of getting infected especially when it is
indoors. Allow for time – at least 30 minutes - to disinfect the church again
before another service can take place in the same church. Homily should not
exceed 10 minutes. Note that according to Schedule 2 regulation 3, (3) of
Regulation Gazette No.10177, the time of the service may not exceed two hours.
7.
Use of face masks:
Everyone
entering the Church must wear a face mask to cover the nose and mouth
completely. People must be informed by the health worker who is doing the
screening to avoid touching the eyes, nose, and mouth and to cough or sneeze
into the crook of one’s arm, or into a tissue, then dispose of the tissue in a
plastic-lined rubbish bin provided by the Church.
8.
Social Distancing
Social
distancing must be maintained as per regulatory guidelines. As such, it will be
based on the size of the Church and the social distancing requirements will
determine the number in the congregation which can never exceed 50. Attendees
must be allocated by the Parish’s regions/blocks/sections/community to limit
the number of persons per service to assist in the management of flow,
attendance, and numbers at any given time. Seating must be according to the
‘social distance’ of one and half metres (1.5m) between participants in every
direction. Marking out pews for the appropriate seating order. For example, one
can use masking tape for this. Seating encouraged to be by alternate rows for
social distancing. There shall be no sign of peace rite so that touching is
avoided.
(Note:
No one with even the slightest cold ought to attend services. This applies
particularly to the priests and assistants as they will be the common
denominators in the event of the spread of infection across services held at
the church. Social distancing regulation also applies to the ministers around
the altar. There need only be one altar server to assist at the altar.)
9.
Holy Communion
Physical
distances to be strictly observed, with no hand contact during the service.
Communion
in one kind should continue as was the case before the lockdown with social
distancing. The priest must administer the Sacrament at a safe distance and
only place it on the hand of the recipient and not the tongue. Only the priest
will use the chalice. Communicants must stand in a single line observing a two
and to two and half meter (2m-2.5m) distance between each person. Ushers must
ensure the orderly approach to the distribution point and the safe return to
the communicant’s seat. Non-communicants will remain in their seats. Communion
to be distributed with sterile gloves or at least sanitised hands.
1 10.Collection
Collections
and plan giving envelopes (Kabelo) to be offered at the sanctuary step into
large open containers. People must maintain social distance while doing this
assisted by ushers. There will be no offertory procession with the collection.
There should be no processions in and out of the Church.Arrangements for
planned giving through EFT to be encouraged during this pandemic. People helping
with the collection – Finance Committee members - must sanitise their hands
before, during and after the counting of offerings or gifts and must ensure
that he or she does not touch his or her face during the process.
1 11. No Choir singing
There
will be no singing because droplets are carried further when we sing and we
also breathe in more deeply in singing. Two meters is not far enough apart for
hymns to be sung. As such choirs are breeding grounds for the virus to spread
and infect others. Instrumental music or recorded music can be used to fill the
slots where hymns would usually be sung. Similarly, responses need to sotto
voce (intentionally lowering the voice) to avoid expressing any
saliva. All hymn books, bibles and missals to be removed from pews.
1 12.Leaving the Church after Mass or
service
There
should be no procession when moving out of the Church
No
socialising in the Church or outside the Church after Mass or services.
Following
the dismissal, the priest and other assistants must observe social distancing
when speaking to persons inside or outside the Church. No tea or coffee
fellowship shall be done after the services. People attending services should
not walk in groups.
(Note:
Meetings and other assemblies to be postponed indefinitely unless they can be
conducted electronically. Catechism classes are suspended until further notice.
No group meetings after Mass or services.)
1 13. Outdoor confessions and counselling
of individuals with masks.
Confessions
and spiritual counselling may be conducted outside the church maintaining
social distancing to avoid having to sanitise the confessional furnishings and because
the risk of infecting or getting infected is very high in a smaller space. Face
masks should be worn and any blessing must be administered without touching the
person.
Conclusion
Brother Priests,
Missionary Sisters and Lay Church Leaders, please be exemplary in complying
with these regulations for your own safety because you are servant-leaders
recognised by our government as “essential religious frontline workers” especially
in counselling and supporting our people in the fight against the pandemic.
Teach and direct our people to do as you do in a spirit of humility and
responsibility as Christ calls us to do. Although as servant-leaders you cannot
isolate yourselves from others, you can and should insulate yourselves against
covid-19 by constantly sanitizing your hands, keeping to social distancing and
wearing a facemask. Do not take unnecessary risks. In a pandemic it is always
best to err on the side of caution. Stay as safe as possible in the grace of
God so that you can help others to maintain their well- being.
“To everything there is a season, and a time to
every purpose under heaven: A
time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time
to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace,
and a time to refrain from embracing.” (Ecclesiastes 3, 4-5). This wise person
understood that nothing lasts forever in this world. We are in the season of a
pandemic – a season of weeping, mourning, of casting away stones and of
refraining from embracing.
Let
us do all we can to persevere in love and serve one another in the Name of our
risen Lord Jesus in this difficult season which will pass and give way to a new
season of laughter, dancing, building
and embracing! This is our hope. If we
cooperate, help one another and be accountable to one another in doing all we
can to avoid and overcome covid-19, then the new season will unfold quicker
than we think.
May
the Lord bless us anew with the special graces of the Holy Spirit this
Pentecost Sunday and may the guardian angels protect us in these trying times.
May the Lord also bless our leaders and all our brothers and sisters of Southern
Africa with the spirit of ubuntu.
“Nkosi,
sikelel’ iAfrika.”
Bishop
Joao Noe Rodrigues
31 May 2020
Bishop of Tzaneen Diocese Pentecost Sunday
