Concern about Coronavirus

  • Thread starter Thread starter Meowwwwww
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

Meowwwwww

Guest
There is a world wide Coronavirus outbreak. This virus has an incubation period up to 14 days. During this time, the patient will not show any syndrome but is contagious. The most updated news I got is this can be transmitted via both droplet and skin contact.

I notice people still attend mass even if they show flu-like syndromes. I am concern some practices within the church can become risky.

For example, everybody dip their fingers in the holy water, drink from the same holy communion chalice, sometime you put the holy communion in someone’s mouth, and shake hand with each others.

Will the church do something during this period to avoid infection within the community?
 
First of all, it’s hardly a world-wide outbreak yet. I don’t know where in the world you are, but there’s been all of 5 cases in USA and they all involved people who were recently in China and caught it there. Priests in USA are more concerned with people not catching the regular old flu that we get here every year.

Second of all, the bishop of Hong Kong has put some practices in place regarding receiving Holy Communion that are protective against the virus. We already have two threads about them, both of which were started by somebody complaining that these protective measures were liturgical abuses.

Third of all, there is no requirement that you dip your fingers in the holy water, drink from a chalice, receive Communion in the mouth, or shake hands with people. I usually don’t shake hands with people even when there’s not a virus outbreak. I wave instead.

You are quite free to receive the Host in your hand and skip the chalice. Problem solved.

Remember that you can take some responsibility for protecting yourself from catching whatever’s going around. You should not be relying on “the church” to always “do something”. The church is not your mom or your nanny. I’ve seen people who wear facemasks, carry a bottle of hand sanitizer, whatever it takes.
 
Last edited:
The precautions for flu are the same and frankly influenza poses a far higher risk. 8200 people have already died from the flu this flu season, including 54 children.

Having said that, studies have not linked drinking from a common cup to pose a greater statistical threat than going to church and not drinking from a common cup. Churches have not been identified as a particularly high risk activity in typical people at typical times. Most of us could get the flu or the corona virus and still survive fine if we avail ourselves of care available from US medicine.

If you have a depressed immune system or know you have probably been exposed to an illness like the flu, be very particular about disease prevention measures, but especially during flu season.

If you’re sneezing or coughing, consider staying home to avoid exposing vulnerable people to harm or go to a Mass with few older or frail people likely to be in attendance. (Every pastor I have ever had not only gave dispensation but bluntly said: Stay Home!!)

To be safer, you can stay away from sections of church reserved for the elderly or the infirm, wash your hands with plenty of soap and water when you enter the building, and yes go to the bathroom and wash your hands again if you cough into one of your hands or into a handkerchief you’re holding. Take as many precautions yourself as you reasonably can. If you do receive on the tongue, hold your mouth wide and don’t close it until the priest’s hand is clear. If you receive in the hand, be careful that you haven’t touched a pew with your hand (since a virus from a sneeze or cough can live on a dry surface for several hours) and keep your hand still so the host can be placed into it without touching you.

These are little things; hand-washing with plenty of soap and water between touching anything and eating and then washing before leaving a crowded situation are probably the most well-documented ways of lowering the likelihood of disease transmission—that and keeping your hands away from your face! Do this at work, at stores and at school, too.
 
Last edited:
I really don’t think you should be giving out medical advice on here like “Face masks are of limited value”. I know of immunocompromised people who wear them, including wearing them to Mass. Perhaps they are being instructed how to wear them by their doctors for all I know.

As for handwashing with soap and water, a person can’t normally be running out of Mass before holy communion to be handwashing, especially when the church likely doesn’t have enough bathrooms for everybody in the congregation who might be concerned. It’s also not practical to be going through a whole Mass without touching a pew. People use hand sanitizer before Holy Communion if they are concerned. It’s a reasonable precaution to take; the EMHCs distributing communion do the same.

Muting now, have a nice day.
 
Last edited:
Fair enough but I was answering your medical advice which didn’t come from an epidemiologist, did it? I would aim people at advice being given right now by epidemiologists being interviewed about corona virus. Look it up yourself while you’re at it!

In other words, don’t guess, oh that looks good, I will do that, that will make me safe. Ask actual medical experts and for crying out loud follow their instructions!!
 
Last edited:
There is a thread already, it combines a couple of threads, world news forum.

Governments are preparing to implement protocols for this virus if its becoming a potential pandemic. If and when there are increasing concerns, protocols will be implemented to diminish spread. They will be well advertised.

The Church, no doubt,will implement protocols should need arise.
We will know much more about this virus by the end of the week. At least 2 countries are in the process of developing vaccines. China and Australia are developing vaccines. Australia usually works with USA in cases like this , so I would assume that is also the case. They worked together on vaccine development for Hendra Virus very rapidly.

It is now classed as a potential pandemic in some countries. Its a watch and wait.
 
Last edited:
Please dont give out medical advice. Leave it for individual governments to respond as required.
Also as I keep saying, it is not helpful to conflate flu stats with this new virus.

A far as facemasks go, at least one country is releasing its stockpile to medical staff. The masks available were exhausted in that country’s recent bushfires. The government judges facemasks have enough merit of protection for medical staff to release the stockpile reserves for use with confirmed and suspected cases.
 
Last edited:
I’ve not used a public Holy Water font for as long as I have worked at a parish.

It is normal during flu outbreaks or strep outbreaks for the Chalice and the exchange of peace to be suspended here.

You are not obligated to shake hands, partake of the chalice or use the open holy water (I get a small bottle directly from the spout of the closed “big tank”).

Wash your hands, use alcohol sanitizer, usual precautions.
 
Jesus tells us to always be ready for the Bridegroom, to have our lamps lit.
Go to confession as you need, go to the sacraments. Over the centuries there have been a tremendous amount of people who never saw the age of 20. That helps to keep God first in our lives. We aren’t guaranteed to be here a week from now.

That said, do the usual flu precautions. Be smart.
 
Don’t worry about the coronavirus. It’s just a story getting hyped up in the media to drive ratings and page views. As others have stated, normal strains of the flu are much more dangerous and kill far more people each year than the coronavirus ever will. Remember how SARS was supposed to kill us all? Yeah, me neither.
 
PennyinCanada said:
That said, do the usual flu precautions. Be smart.
Click to expand...
This is a charitable act, too. This is not to say that anyone who has actually had a true case of influenza won’t of course have this way of getting very vigilant about never getting anything like that again. I mean that for some it is avoiding one of the most miserable illnesses of our lives and for others it is a matter of avoiding what could unfortunately prove to be the last illness of our lives.
 
If it is merely a hype, why some countries already fully or partially closed their boarders? It is not something you should take lightly.

The way for spreading is NOT yet fully known. The latest Chinese news says the disease can spread via patients’ belongs …
 
Put your body and your soul in the hands of God.
I agree with @Weserthy. It is a flu virus and flu is treatable. China has many poor and vulnerable people.
Last year there was another awful virus. My colleague when to the hospital all freaked out - the doctor said “it is the flu.” He asked “is it the flu from the media?” She said “it’s a flu, they are all flu. Take this and that etc”
Thank our Lord for the blessings He has given to you so far, ask Him for health, place your worries in His care and live your life. The flu passes, so do the people in your life.
:hugs:
 
Last edited:
Weserthy said:
Don’t worry about the coronavirus. It’s just a story getting hyped up in the media to drive ratings and page views.
Click to expand...
Seriously. There’s always a Disease du Jour that’s “going to kill us all.”

My strongest concern is that after media cries wolf ad nauseum, nobody’s going to believe them with a genuinely dangerous outbreak hits.
 
I was once visiting a parish in Texas and there was a transparent water creature swimming around in the Holy Water font.

When the font/bowls at each door are emptied and cleaned each week, the water that comes out and the grime left in the bowl is enough to make you gag a little!
 
Last Sunday, a man was sitting behind me with his three coughing children. At the sign of peace, I shook hands with him while praying, “God protect me from catching this cold.” I couldn’t snub him.

As I was standing in line to receive the Eucharist, I prayed: “Whether I get sick is in Your hands.”
 
During flu season, it’s a Diocesan-wide policy by our bishop that sign of peace cannot be a handshake, but either a wave of the hand or a respectful bow to those nearby. He also prohibits Holy Communion from the cup (except for the presiding priest) during flu season.
 
Last edited:
Coronavirus and influenza are completely different viruses and cause completely different infections. People in China are bricking off roads and tearing up roads to prevent transit. Simply not done for influenza outbreaks. Virus tracking site shows more dead than recovered and this is for tracked cases only. Please do your own research and take this seriously. I doubt we are getting all the information.

https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top