Hand Sanitizing during Mass

[benedictgal]

A couple of days ago, I was attending a refresher for EMHC’s and newbies.

Someone mentioned germs. I was rather surprised to hear my pastor say that prior to distributing Holy Communion, he uses a hand sanitizer. He said that sometimes, he’s picked up colds and whatnaught from shaking hands so it’s his way of safeguarding himself. He didn’t mention if he uses the hand sanitizer after her purifies his hands (after Communion).

 

[Jennifer123]

I’ve been known to use my hand sanitizer after the sign of peace on numerous occasions. The reason is simple: I have two small children and one on the way, and I can’t afford for any of us to get sick. It’s pretty likely in a church as large as ours that somebody there has a virus. I know nobody would intentionally pass germs at Mass, but hand-to-hand contact is one of the surest ways of doing it. I mean no disrespect to anyone, but I have to look out for the health of my kiddos.

Thank you. I was just about to say this and honestly I am kind of surprised that I may have offended anyone by doing so. My DS has asthma problems that any sort of small cold could lead him into the hospital. We don’t necessarily do this all the time, more often in “flu and cold season” when we are more concerned about it, but certainly it’s not directed at anyone specifically.

It’s not about being afraid of any one person’s germs, I’m either trying to keep us from catching a cold or avoiding spreading one. It’s that simple. Could it be that maybe the OP is being a little too sensitive?

 

[surfinpure]

Thank you. I was just about to say this and honestly I am kind of surprised that I may have offended anyone by doing so. My DS has asthma problems that any sort of small cold could lead him into the hospital. We don’t necessarily do this all the time, more often in “flu and cold season” when we are more concerned about it, but certainly it’s not directed at anyone specifically.

It’s not about being afraid of any one person’s germs, I’m either trying to keep us from catching a cold or avoiding spreading one. It’s that simple. Could it be that maybe the OP is being a little too sensitive?

This is why it is so important to presume good motives in the absence of any information. I’m sure there are many immuno-compromised people who still want to attend Mass and offer a sign of peace but cannot afford to risk getting an illness.

Likewise, there have been times when I went to Mass while recovering from a cold and wasn’t 100% sure about no longer being contagious, so I simply waved at people instead of shaking hands, explaining that I didn’t want to give them my germs. Nobody seemed to mind that! I wish more people would do it.

 

[Jennifer123]

This is why it is so important to presume good motives in the absence of any information.

Isn’t this the definition of charity?

 

[surfinpure]

Isn’t this the definition of charity?

Yes, that and not passing on your germs!

 

[cecilia97]

Likewise, there have been times when I went to Mass while recovering from a cold and wasn’t 100% sure about no longer being contagious, so I simply waved at people instead of shaking hands, explaining that I didn’t want to give them my germs. Nobody seemed to mind that! I wish more people would do it.

I try to do this too. Once a gentleman insisted I shake even though I KNEW I was ill and could pass it to him. He smiled and said “God takes care of all that in here!” Indeed…he takes care of it these days through our common knowledge of how colds are passed, and helping us help ourselves.

 

[AMDGtoo]

Once a gentleman insisted I shake even though I KNEW I was ill and could pass it to him. He smiled and said “God takes care of all that in here!”

I think Cecilia97–we are to take care ourselves and we are not in a little protected cocoon when at Mass.

Last year I wasn’t “shaking hands” not because I was afraid of passing germs, but because I had a broken finger. And I can assure you that when the gentleman grabbed my hand anyway and gave me a firm handshake, I felt it. It was one big “ouch”. And the poor gentleman felt so very badly. God didn’t suddenly step in to anesthetize my hand so as to “take care of all that” so why would I think that I would suddenly be made germ-free during the Kiss of Peace?.

 

[yinekka]

The sign of Peace is optional. If it is a problem why not ask the priest to omit it at least during cold and 'flu season?

 

[Newbie2]

If you’re speaking of the Lavabo after the prayer over the gifts, that’s a symbolic gesture not a true ‘washing’. It’s certainly does little to get rid of germs, particularly when there’s no altar server and Fr. barely dips his fingers in the bowl of water.

Yes, the practice may actually loosten up or suspend bacteria or viruses in the moisture, making them more susceptable to transfer.

A couple of days ago, I was attending a refresher for EMHC’s and newbies.

 

[aixia]

I’ve absolutely used hand sanitizer during Mass, and I’m sure I’ll do it again. I’m asthmatic, so colds and flu can really be dangerous. If I’m sick, I’ll discreetly grab a bit of sanitizer before the Sign of Peace so as not to pass along whatever I have. If I notice someone around me is sneezing/coughing/blowing their nose, I do it after the Sign of Peace. I have only once gotten any negative response from anyone, and that was at this past Easter Vigil, when the obviously non-Catholic girl in front of me wrinkled her nose and gave me a weird look. My guess was that the apple smell was too strong for her. She was seated and I was kneeling, so my hands would have been pretty close to her nose. But I was ill with a cold and didn’t want to pass it on, so I used my sanitizer.

 

[tjfitz]

I was 12 years in Ireland and returned to the U.S. a year ago, and was astounded, shocked and annoyed to see the Eucharistic Ministers coming up from the pews onto the altar space then pumping hand sanitizer on their hands, and walking to the altar, making a big show of rubbing their hands together to spread the stuff around and kill all the nasties. I presume the big show was to reassure the watching Nervous Nellies.

It is intrusive and extremely undignified and plain silly and it made me wonder what had happened to people in the parish to require such a thing. Probably some worry wart on the Parish Council put this into effect.

Hasn’t anyone been paying attention to all the buzz about the near-epidemic of asthma among our children possibly being caused by over-cleanliness?

If we don’t get exposed to bacteria and viruses we just won’t be able to cope with them when we are older.

 

[surfinpure]

I was 12 years in Ireland and returned to the U.S. a year ago, and was astounded, shocked and annoyed to see the Eucharistic Ministers coming up from the pews onto the altar space then pumping hand sanitizer on their hands, and walking to the altar, making a big show of rubbing their hands together to spread the stuff around and kill all the nasties. I presume the big show was to reassure the watching Nervous Nellies.

It is intrusive and extremely undignified and plain silly and it made me wonder what had happened to people in the parish to require such a thing. Probably some worry wart on the Parish Council put this into effect.

Hasn’t anyone been paying attention to all the buzz about the near-epidemic of asthma among our children possibly being caused by over-cleanliness?

If we don’t get exposed to bacteria and viruses we just won’t be able to cope with them when we are older.

There is no need to insult half the parents on this board by calling us “worry warts” and “nervous nellies.” Not everyone benefits from exposure to viruses and bacteria. Young children, elderly people, and all who have compromised immune systems cannot afford to catch some of the dangerous things that are going around, and certainly would not be “helped” by them.

Perhaps because you were in Ireland you are unaware of the influenza scare we had in the US several years ago, when the flu shots provided did not immunize against a particularly nasty strain of the virus. People died. People in my area died. Small children, elderly adults, cancer patients, and others lost their lives. And they all caught it from someone else.

But even on a “good” year, there are plenty of us who cannot afford to have these diseases in our families. Those of us with newborns know how devastating a single flu virus can be. And that’s not to mention some of the other nasty things going around from time to time, like MRSA and West Nile, or the cost of treating a family of five who has a cold. My husband and I estimated we spent $100 per family virus this past year (there were at least 8 of them, and that’s not counting two trips to the emergency room, which cost us well over a thousand), and that hurt our already tight budget considerably.

So if I am ever standing next to you in Mass, and you see me squirt a tiny bit of gel into my hands before giving you the sign of peace, please don’t roll your eyes at me. I, a pregnant mother of two small children and daughter to elderly parents, simply cannot afford to get whatever bug you might be carrying … or perhaps I’d rather not give you mine.

 

[fix]

Good hygiene does not cause asthma. Good hygiene should not be seen as a problem. Lack of hygiene is another matter.

 

[tjfitz]

If we are so worried about germs, say during a flu outbreak, why don’t we tell everyone to stay home instead of attending Mass?

Let’s do away with the handshakes of peace (I’d love to see that practice go by the boards, along with the hand-holding during the Our Father).

Let’s tell parents to keep those little germ-laden children home and away from all the vulnerable aged and compromised people at Mass. Tell the parents to go to Mass separately so the children and the others in church would be safe.(My wife and I always took our four stairstep children to Mass unless they were sick.)

Let’s keep our children away from other germ-laden children at school or play.

Let’s give anyone entering our homes a spray-down with sanitizer lest we catch anything.

Let’s wear moon suits in public with high-efficiency air filters.

 

[surfinpure]

If we are so worried about germs, say during a flu outbreak, why don’t we tell everyone to stay home instead of attending Mass?

Let’s do away with the handshakes of peace (I’d love to see that practice go by the boards, along with the hand-holding during the Our Father).

Let’s tell parents to keep those little germ-laden children home and away from all the vulnerable aged and compromised people at Mass. Tell the parents to go to Mass separately so the children and the others in church would be safe.(My wife and I always took our four stairstep children to Mass unless they were sick.)

Let’s keep our children away from other germ-laden children at school or play.

Let’s give anyone entering our homes a spray-down with sanitizer lest we catch anything.

Let’s wear moon suits in public with high-efficiency air filters.

I don’t appreciate your sarcasm or your disdain for the judgment calls made by frustrated, exhausted parents. You take care of your children how you like, but please refrain from heaping sarcasm and insults upon those of us who would prefer not to have our most vulnerable exposed to disease.

Being new to the forums, you might take a glance at forum guidelines for charity in posting. Rudeness, name-calling, and insults are always discouraged.

 

[fix]

If we are so worried about germs, say during a flu outbreak, why don’t we tell everyone to stay home instead of attending Mass?

Let’s do away with the handshakes of peace (I’d love to see that practice go by the boards, along with the hand-holding during the Our Father).

Let’s tell parents to keep those little germ-laden children home and away from all the vulnerable aged and compromised people at Mass. Tell the parents to go to Mass separately so the children and the others in church would be safe.(My wife and I always took our four stairstep children to Mass unless they were sick.)

Let’s keep our children away from other germ-laden children at school or play.

Let’s give anyone entering our homes a spray-down with sanitizer lest we catch anything.

Let’s wear moon suits in public with high-efficiency air filters.

Why not simply practice good hygiene and encourage others to do so as well? Is being hygienic so difficult?

 

[tjfitz]

More unwelcome addition to the rant, this from the Medical College of Wisconsin (emphasis added) :healthlink.mcw.edu/article/1031002421.html

"Hygiene Hypothesis: Are We Too ‘Clean’ for Our Own Good?

Increased hygiene and a lack of exposure to various microorganisms may be affecting the immune systems of many populations - particularly in highly developed countries like the US - to the degree that individuals are losing their bodily ability to fight off certain diseases.

That’s the essence of the ‘hygiene hypothesis,’ a fairly new school of thought that argues that rising incidence of asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis and perhaps several other diseases may be, at least in part, the result of lifestyle and environmental changes that have made us too ‘clean’ for our own good."

 

[surfinpure]

More unwelcome addition to the rant, this from the Medical College of Wisconsin (emphasis added) :healthlink.mcw.edu/article/1031002421.html

"Hygiene Hypothesis: Are We Too ‘Clean’ for Our Own Good?

Increased hygiene and a lack of exposure to various microorganisms may be affecting the immune systems of many populations - particularly in highly developed countries like the US - to the degree that individuals are losing their bodily ability to fight off certain diseases.

That’s the essence of the ‘hygiene hypothesis,’ a fairly new school of thought that argues that rising incidence of asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis and perhaps several other diseases may be, at least in part, the result of lifestyle and environmental changes that have made us too ‘clean’ for our own good."

There is a difference between a little bacteria that helps the immune system and a virus that can kill the weak. And people ought to be allowed to make their own choices about germ-control (so long as it does not adversely affect others) without being harrassed about it.

 

[fix]

More unwelcome addition to the rant, this from the Medical College of Wisconsin (emphasis added) :healthlink.mcw.edu/article/1031002421.html

"Hygiene Hypothesis: Are We Too ‘Clean’ for Our Own Good?

Increased hygiene and a lack of exposure to various microorganisms may be affecting the immune systems of many populations - particularly in highly developed countries like the US - to the degree that individuals are losing their bodily ability to fight off certain diseases.

That’s the essence of the ‘hygiene hypothesis,’ a fairly new school of thought that argues that rising incidence of asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis and perhaps several other diseases may be, at least in part, the result of lifestyle and environmental changes that have made us too ‘clean’ for our own good."

And this is proof for not being hygienic? Should food handlers stop washing their hands?

 

[nightwalker]

tjfitz:

I was 12 years in Ireland and returned to the U.S. a year ago, and was astounded, shocked and annoyed to see the Eucharistic Ministers coming up from the pews onto the altar space then pumping hand sanitizer on their hands, and walking to the altar, making a big show of rubbing their hands together to spread the stuff around and kill all the nasties. I presume the big show was to reassure the watching Nervous Nellies.

It is intrusive and extremely undignified and plain silly and it made me wonder what had happened to people in the parish to require such a thing.

I have no problem with an EMHC sanitizing their hands before leaving their pews. To do so on the altar, making a big show of it is “extremely undignified and plain silly”.

Can we please take the off topic debate elsewhere? (BTW, there is a middle ground between sanitized and unhygienic)