New Haven Register (Sunday) (New Haven, CT)
Houses of worship adjust to reopening, loosened rules
Faithful say: God is here, in person or online
Religious communities, Jewish, Christian and Muslim, have struggled to provide spiritual support during the COVID-19 pandemic, even as the need has been greater than ever, faith leaders said.
Now, as restrictions on gatherings have loosened, some parishes and congregations have begun to meet in person again, while others continue to hold services on Zoom or livestreamed from a nearly empty house of worship. Each has found a way to keep the bonds of community while protecting the health of its members.
Each demonstrates in its own way the creativity of bringing God’s message to people during an unprecedented health crisis, faith leaders said.
Rising numbers
As the Archdiocese of Hartford allowed its parishes to hold weekday Masses, then weekend Masses, in person, attendance Saturdays and Sundays at St. Bridget has risen to nearly 700 over seven services, according to the Rev. Jeffrey Romans, pastor.
“They all have been packed,” he said.
“Packed,” however, means people must register online. No more than 100 have been allowed inside the church, and they are spaced throughout the sanctuary. As of Thursday, the state raised the limit to 200, with no more than 50 percent capacity.
“The pastoral staff is meeting
this week to discern a new schedule,” Romans said.
Since Sept. 13, when one Mass was added, there have been two on Saturday and five on Sunday. Romans said they have to be sure they have enough time to sanitize the church between Masses.
Members use SignUpGenius to register to come to a particular Mass.
“People have been super, very compliant with following the requirements set up by the state,” said Lynn Krieg, a longtime member. “We clean between services and we have a whole crew of volunteers that greet people.”
The registration allows the parish to know who is at a service, in case someone comes down with COVID.
“Some question that it’s kind of overkill what we’re doing, but we’re very happy that we’re open and we want to remain open,” Krieg said. “It has gone so much better than I thought it ever would.”
Jim Mitchell, another member, said, “I don’t know if we’ll get to 200 per Mass but at least we’re prepared for it.” The church has a total capacity of 1,100 and numbers 3,000 families as members.
All the Masses have been at St. Bridget Church. The parish’s other church, St. Thomas Becket, is closed.
In addition to Mass, devotions, Bible study and book and bereavement groups have been held on Zoom, and Mass also has been livestreamed on Facebook and YouTube. “
“I think the only thing that we’ve been doing outside is confession,” Mitchell said.
Fortunately, the parish hasn’t taken much of a financial hit, Romans said. “Giving has maintained from Day 1 pretty steady. I’m grateful for that,” he said. “We took a little loss financially around Easter time, of course,” before weekend Masses were allowed.
And while the parish uses robocalls and the MyParish app to connect with parishioners, some have not returned to church.
“Certainly we have a significant number of parishioners that we haven’t seen yet since March,” mainly older members and those with health concerns, Romans said. “I have a number of them that have become my pen pals. They may not be here physically, but we’re certainly spiritually connected.”
“Because we’re doing the checking in with people and the volunteers … I feel the connection with people … has gotten even greater,” Mitchell said. “We’re seeing them constantly.
“After going through months and months of no Mass and no gatherings and no getting together, I’m tremendously encouraged by what we’ve been able to accomplish here,”
Mitchell said. “As we get closer to get completely opened, I think we’ll be a very vibrant and energetic parish.”
Elevating the digital experience
“We’ve been doing quite well. We’ve basically been digital since mid-March, like most congregations,” said Rabbi Evan Schultz, spiritual leader of the Reform synagogue Congregation B’nai Israel, 2710 Park Ave., Bridgeport.
For the recent High Holy Days, “we tried to elevate the digital experience in some ways. … I think people really appreciated it, and I think we’re going to try as best we can to broadcast from our sanctuary.”
Viewing services online, some members “now feel even more connected because they can see everyone’s faces,” Schultz said. “I think people are finding it meaningful. Others can’t wait to return in person.”
While online attendance was at its peak in March and April, “it has tapered off a bit,” he said. “Some have stepped back a little bit. We’ve tried to be really attuned to people we’re not seeing on the Zoom.”
He said he and Rabbi Sarah Marion “over the summer took some time as clergy to connect with our congregation one on one.”
Schultz said Saturday morning Bible studies have been held outdoors and a bat mitzvah and shiva for a deceased member have taken place on the patio. “It’s quite meaningful,” he said.
One member died of COVID-19 at the beginning of the pandemic, Schultz said.
“People have really stepped up in powerful ways, which is great to see,” he said. “We have people affected by job loss, their livelihood has been affected. People are stepping up to help out those who are affected financially by this.”
A team including medical professionals, teachers and human resources professionals has been meeting to plan for indoor worship. “Right now, no plans to gather inside,” Schultz said. “A top priority … is to keep everyone healthy. There really hasn’t been a major push by the congregants to come back inside.”
One consideration is “we want to make things equally accessible” to all members, since everyone wouldn’t be able to join indoors, he said. “We don’t want to create a dynamic where we have to limit people.”
As an Orthodox congregation that closely follows Jewish law, “We’re not really invested in doing anything online on the Sabbath,” said Rabbi Greg Wall of Beit Chaverim Synagogue, 85 Post Road West, Westport. “We do services in person because we require a quorum and according to Jewish law they have to be in the same place at the same time.”
The quorum, known as a minyan, is composed of 10 men. “We have services seven days a week. We have a maximum of 48 at a time under three tents,” Wall said, with everyone standing eight feet apart.
“We actually had to hold multiple services on the High Holy Days,” he said. Rosh Hashana services lasted 41⁄ hours and
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Yom Kippur five, “maybe more than that,” he said.
“We’re a traditional synagogue so we have multiple times for prayer every day. We’re happy to be able to do it,” he said.
The congregation numbers 70 families and “there are some people that are not comfortable going outside at all, so we help them to be able to pray at home,” Wall said. “I think in some ways we’re stronger than ever. I’m doing all of my teaching online during the week.”
He said an “extraordinarily high number” of members are “extremely engaged” in the life of Beit Chaverim online or from home, which is “a consolation.” He holds classes in the Talmud, Bible and Jewish law and ethics.
“That’s just the way we connect,” Wall said. “Anything that we could do online we’ll do online. The Kol Nidre service, held before Yom Kippur begins at sundown, was done online, he said.
The pandemic has cost people their jobs and some extended family members died of COVID. “That was a dark time,” Wall said.
But with members whose parents survived the Holocaust, “we sort of take the challenge in perspective,” he said. “I think that most people are saying, ‘You know what, we’re here and we’re doing what we can to connect.’ It’s a humbling experience but we’re hopeful that things are going to get better soon and we have faith in a higher power that things are going to work out.”
COVID hit Fairfield County just as the holy month of Ramadan began, and prayer services were put on Zoon, said Imam Kemal Cecunjanin of Monroe Masjid, 57 Pepper St., Monroe.
“Friday services were also online, which is also challenging for people.” The Jummah prayer, accompanied by a sermon, is held Friday afternoon and is the high point of the week.
“When we started up again, we were inside, but we were doing social distancing, everyone far away,” Cecunjanin said. “We didn’t have a lot of people show up anyway,” with 20 attending vs. 60 to 80 before the pandemic.
Now, the congregation is back to those numbers, he said. “It’s six feet apart, so the mosque looks even more full now. It fills quicker.” One change has been, “We used to serve food during our gatherings, so we stopped doing that,” Cecunjanin said.
“The Zoom was interesting because during our program in Ramadan we had more people on Zoom for some programs” than in previous years, he said. “We never stopped the virtual options, because we saw there was a need for that.”
Despite the limitations, Cecunjanin said, “I enjoyed Ramadan. We had great numbers and also people from other towns and other cities,” including members’ friends and families.
Unfortunately, one member died from COVID-19, but “people have been sticking together,” Cecunjanin said. “This has allowed us to see … the blessing of being together and having each other and even being able to go to a mosque.”
While the mosque’s bills aren’t large, donations dropped once the pandemic hit. Most people donate during the Jummah prayer, he said. “Even people who are passing by, they just give freely on Fridays.”
Most of the parishioners at Christ Episcopal Church, 84 Broadway, New Haven, have attended daily morning prayer, Sunday evening compline and Sunday Masses online. But, according to the Rev. Stephen Holton, rector, “As things have begun to open, we added in … two outdoor services, one at 8, one at 9, out in the garden here.”
The services are limited to 20, people must selfscreen for any COVID-19 symptoms and “everyone keeps the mask on for the entirety of the service,” he said. Members bring their own chairs, as well.
Holy Communion, consisting of bread but no wine, is “very carefully distributed,” Holton said.
The other services are livestreamed on Christ Church’s website and Facebook page. “We have a limited number of people” inside the church, he said. “Just a priest, one singer, an organist and perhaps one other person like the preacher, all wearing masks. We are opening all our windows so there’s ventilation in the building.”
While attendance is hard to measure, Holton said about 70 watch in real time, and more later, when it is posted on the web. “Our Sunday attendance amongst all of our services was 220 … and that number is actually higher than our average Sunday attendance for all of last year,” he said.
But while “seeing one another is a touchpoint to call each other during the week … reaching out has been largely through telephone.” Members have volunteered to make calls. But most cannot see each other in person. “That’s been a loss that members of our parish have felt,” Holton said.
There are losses, though, with “a conspicuous absence of some folks who are not participating online,” he said. “There have been some barriers and some challenges,” including not being able to keep the church doors open for people to come and pray during the day, including homeless and mentally ill people who stop in. Also, being downtown near Yale University, “what we miss is folks who may be coming through town and coming to Mass,” Holton said.
And while some have not adapted to the online experience, Holton said, others have found Zoom to be spiritually friendly. Holton said one told him, “I didn’t expect to find Jesus on Zoom but I have. This is a gift.”
The parish’s St. Hilda’s House internship program and the Community Soup Kitchen have both continued to operate, he said.
Most of the parish income is from annual pledges “and we’re right on target,” Holton said. But with stewardship season arriving, “It will be a strange time to be asking people to give,” he said.
“We’re exploring right now, within the governor’s guidelines and the guidelines of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut, when it will be safe to be inside,” Holton said. “I suspect that by November we’ll have some sort of plan. … We are definitely on the more cautious end of the spectrum right now.”
There are four ways to worship at St. Teresa of Calcutta Roman Catholic Church in Manchester: Online through the church website, in person, under a tent, or in a car, listening on the FM radio. “In this way, those who are uncomfortable to go in, they can still participate in the liturgy, said the Rev. Marcin Pluciennik, pastor.
Now there are four weekend services, but “we are monitoring whether to add a Mass,” Pluciennik said.
“The attendance is down, but there is a very strong online presence because many people, they are still uncomfortable to go out. But overall, we are blessed,” he said.
“We are … trying to focus more on Jesus than pandemic. … To bring Jesus into this scary world today,” he said. “I am grateful, I am proud to be the pastor of this parish and grateful for the people who are here.”