PORTLAND, Ore. — Catholic churches have started reopening in Portland.
Several catholic churches in the area held Mass in person for the first time in nearly two months Saturday and Sunday.
The Archdiocese of Portland gave parishes a choice this week, telling them if they felt safe and ready they could open for Mass again. But it comes with restrictions.
Off Southeast Woodstock Boulevard in Portland, church members finally gathered again.
"It was really hard,” said Melba Ganaban, a volunteer and parishioner at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church. "The sacrament is very important to us. The Mass and receiving the Holy Communion is the center of our faith.”
The pastor at Our Lady of Sorrows felt ready to welcome parishioners this weekend and greeted them inside the church after they'd been screened and checked-in outside the building.
Ganaban says her fellow church-goers were happy to be back, despite how different service looked compared to before the coronavirus pandemic.
Archbishop Alexander Sample, of the Archdiocese of Portland, said in a video message this week that Catholics can take Holy Communion, but Mass will look very different. Under Oregon Gov. Kate Brown's orders, Mass is limited to just 25 people at one time.
People have to sign up ahead of time to help with contact tracing, which is why Our Lady of Sorrows checking people in before they entered the building.
Churches put safety measures in place, such as social distancing, and buildings must be constantly disinfected.
"There’s nothing we can do to completely eliminate all risk but we're doing everything we can to open up our churches again responsibly, carefully and with great thought," Archbishop Sample said in his video message.
Following Oregon Health Authority's guidance, he urged seniors and people with compromised immune systems or underlying health conditions to still stay home.
Not every pastor feels ready to reopen right now, he said, and some need more time. In fact, many do, including St. Ignatius Catholic Church and Holy Cross Catholic Church.
"I ask, my brothers and sisters, that you have great understanding and patience at this time as we begin to transition back to some level of normalcy in life of our church," Sample said.
Fr. Mark Bachmeier at Holy Cross told his parish in a video message that they can't safely reopen yet because of his health.
"Our situation here at Holy Cross means that with my chemotherapy and radiation starting very soon, and my surgery date on other end of that, we are not planning to reopen even in a limited way for Mass," he said.
Like so many other churches, people can still stream services.
The Archbishop is continuing dispensation for the Sunday Mass obligation, meaning no one is required or expected to attend Mass on the weekends.
"Some of you may decide to stay away for now and that’s fine. You shouldn’t feel guilty about that if you are concerned about your own health and your family. But we want to make sure there is an opportunity for those who are ready and willing," he said.
For those that feel safe to go to Mass, they embrace the step toward normal, or, rather, our "new normal" in our new COVID-19 world.
"It was a great joy that we finally, gradually -- even though it was limited -- reopening feels great," Ganaban said, "and we thank Jesus for that. We've been praying and Jesus answered our prayer."
Gov. Brown's press secretary Elizabeth Merah sent us a statement about the shift to in-person Masses:
"Governor Brown believes all Oregonians should be able to practice their faith safely during this public health crisis. While it is true that the limit on Mass gatherings is 25 or more, the Governor’s Stay Home, Save Lives order also specifies that all gatherings outside the home, of any size, are prohibited if six feet of distance cannot be maintained between individuals. We ask all Oregonians to follow the spirit of the stay home order, which is to minimize gatherings outside the home as much as possible to limit the spread of COVID-19.
The Oregon Health Authority has developed guidance for faith communities and faith-based organizations to do so safely. In particular, the guidance recommends that vulnerable Oregonians from high-risk populations—especially older people and those with underlying health conditions––avoid gatherings outside the home of any size, for their own safety. We recognize that physical distancing requirements present challenges for Oregon’s faith-based organizations, which play an important role in so many people’s lives, especially in times of crisis. But faith leaders can tend to the spiritual needs of their congregations without putting the health and safety of their entire communities at risk."