ST. PAUL - Bishop Paul Terrrio announced today he has sent a directive to parish priests of the Catholic Diocese of St. Paul advising that seniors and parishioners who are ill may forego attending Sunday mass. This has been done as part of the pastoral response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"As has been done in the Edmonton Archdiocese, for our Diocese of St Paul, I am granting a dispensation from Sunday Mass obligation to all persons over sixty-five and to anyone who is sick," Bishop Terrio stated in an email to the St. Paul Journal. He said the decision was made following a conversation this morning with Edmonton's Archbishop Richard W. Smith.
Yesterday, Bishop Terrio also instructed priests in the diocese that they must temporarily withdraw "communion from the cup, communion on the tongue, handshakes and using holy water fonts" in the churches.
"These measures are to diminish the risk of contamination from a disease that threatens the common good of our communities," Bishop Terrio stated.
