Brazil Catholics drawn to worship despite downsized services

APARECIDA, Brazil (AP) — Inside, there was nothing massive about the Mass: Just 1,000 people were spaced carefully across the pews of a vast basilica that normally holds 35,000 as the Roman Catholic Church tried to protect parishioners from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Yet such caution wasn't apparent outside the doors. Thousands of people found themselves unable to stay away from Aparecida on one of the most important weekends of the Brazilian church's calendar, the celebration of the country's patron saint.

A similar scene played out far to the north in Belem, near the mouth of the Amazon River, where even the formal cancelation of a usually immense religious celebration didn't discourage some worshippers — underscoring the church's challenge of trying to practice precautions at a time when many Brazilians are weary of them.

The sanctuary complex in Aparecida, some 110 miles (175 kilometers) north of Sao Paulo, hummed with activity on Sunday, even if it was far less busy than in past years. People filed into a snaking line to catch a glimpse of the image of Our Lady of Aparecida; they wore masks, but distancing was negligible.

Many visited a mall filled with 380 shops and a food court. Cable cars whisked people from the basilica to a hilltop with a 23-meter (75-foot) steel cross.

Jhony Gomes, 31, carried a cross over his shoulder on the highway as he drew near to Aparecida. He said he was surprised to find so many fellow pilgrims on the road during the pandemic, but said it reflected the sanctuary's importance.