Press here for news story on Diocese of Savannah permanent deacon who discovered immediately following our diaconate ordination Mass with the Archbishop of Atlanta, that he has COVID-19.
Yours truly was at this ordination, and like Atlanta’s Archbishop, without mask. I vested our parishioner who was ordained. More than likely I came into contact with this deacon, but for less than 10 minutes as did many of our priests and deacons and the Archbishop of Atlanta, he and most of us without masks.
I wrote the prelude to our local CBS affiliate’s news story on this for our parish Facebook which I link above.
6 comments:
Father, that ordination should have included masks and social distancing. If the laity (who have only just now been allowed to even return to their churches) have to be socially-distanced, and are competing for very reduced pew space in first-come, first-served seating, then the same should have been observed for this event. The pictures of our new deacon posed with pastor and Archbishop, the crowd inside attending the ordination, and outside milling around show absolutely no social distancing. And there is not a mask to be seen.
I’m sorry if this sounds off base, but what were y’all thinking? Please explain. I have support you in the past in most issues and will continue to do so. But for the life of me, I can’t think what you all were thinking here. You really need to understand how the laity in Diosav have and are struggling. We need you to model the sacrifices that are being asked of us. Think goose and gander. Thank you and God bless.
There was social distancing in the cathedral, not all were wearing masks, including the laity present. Many of these same clergy went and I presume laity then went the the peaceful protest Sunday afternoon in downtown Savannah. The vast majority not socially distancing and many without masks and some removing masks and then putting them on again.
The media, by the way, is glorifying the peaceful crowds gather to protest the injustices towards African Americans. Most are not socially distancing or wearing masks and if this had occurred a couple of weeks ago, the media would have unleashed on them. In fact New York did at a synagogue funeral with mourners outside. Remember?
Rioting and looting - no social distancing required.
Going to Church, social distancing required.
What hypocrisy
Father, thanks for your response. The pictures from inside the cathedral do not show social distancing, and certainly not to extent we are having to practice it here locally. And I was only commenting on the ordination, not on the protesting activities later that day.
Again, thanks and God bless.
In the chapel before the ordination ceremony there was little or no social distancing among the assembling clergy, and 95% of them, priests and deacons, were not wearing masks. There were handshakes, hugs, laughter, and "normal" distancing between many who were engaged in conversations.
Anon at 8:03 - I share your sense of frustration. You ask "What were y'all thinking?" I would say, "Most of them weren't thinking at all." Complacency and disregard for others abounds, and not only among the Catholic clergy.
I share your disappointed shock, Father. You all have local, state, and federal health guidance stipulating exactly what circumstances mandate whether you should be anymore risk than the general population and should quarantine. How close, how long, how much, if any contact, were coughs and sneezes involved, etc etc etc, and also if testing and tracing required. Given masks of doubted help, otherwise you all still would have been statistically safer than at some police brutality protest rebranded as racism rally. Very sorry this has happened. No doubt not strictly following policies has put you all at risk, and then some. Prayers for all concerned.
Post a Comment