As Arizona begins to reopen, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix is moving forward with plans to celebrate Mass in person and restore other parish activities this week. 

According to instructions from the Diocese of Phoenix’s website, parishes are offering Mass but with a limited number of people allowed inside the church and other restrictions that follow social distancing guidelines. 

The Mass will also still be livestreamed, but parishes will offer an opportunity for Catholics to receive Holy Communion in-person after Mass, according to the instructions. 

One of the first parishes to do so was St. Gregory Catholic Church in Phoenix, which offered Holy Communion to more than 100 parishioners on Sunday.

Scottsdale church to host four Masses on Sunday

At St. Maria Goretti Catholic Church in Scottsdale, there will be four Masses available for people to attend in person at 8 a.m., 9 a.m., 10 a.m. and 11 a.m., according to Father Thomas Hallsten, the parish’s Parochial Administrator. 

“We’re looking at about 30 minutes each,” Father Hallsten said. “Each of them will be void of things that we have dropped from the very beginning like the Sign of Peace,” which is when attendees greet each other with hugs and handshakes.

Between the shortened Masses, the church will be disinfected, but St. Maria Goretti expects parishioners to wear a mask. To minimize the contact between people, there won’t be a Communion procession and it must be given in the palm of the hand, he said. 

“Ministers will go from pew to pew giving Communion that way we don’t have to have  people moving around and potentially getting to close to anybody,” Hallsten said. 

Hallsten said they are limiting the amount of people in each Mass to about 25% capacity, which for St. Maria Goretti is about 116 people. 

“So we’re trying to get a comfortable distance, but that gives us a little leeway in case larger families come,” Hallsten said. 

Hallsten said phase one of the reopening plan will remain in effect until the Bishop tells the parishes otherwise. Each parish can implement the plan differently. 

St. Maria Goretti will begin holding daily Mass next week starting at 8 a.m. May 17. 

‘They don’t want to take the Eucharist for granted again’

At Our Lady of Perpetual Help Roman Catholic Parish in Scottsdale, Father Greg Schlarb said in an email that next Monday there will be three daily Masses available in the main church. The church hasn’t hosted Mass since March 16.

According to Father Schlarb, the parishioners will be three pew lengths apart from one another during the Holy Communion procession. But the sign of peace and other actions that require touching will be omitted. 

He said they will continue celebrating Sunday Mass via livestream and they will have Holy Communion available at the church from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. The parish plans to slowly reintroduce their Sunday Mass schedule, but have no exact date when that will occur. 

Schlarb said the church will be sanitized and there will be hand-sanitizer stations will be available at the doors. 

The pandemic has changed the churches’ normal proceedings but Hallsten said it shows that people are missing HolyCommunion and going to church regularly. 

“There’s still an eagerness to still come to Communion and come to Mass,” Hallsten said. “Overall, people are missing going to Mass.” 

Schlarb said he hears that many parishioners are missing the experience of receiving HolyCommunion but it’s making their faith stronger. 

“As we introduce the Mass and the distribution of Communion, I am hearing from many parishioners of the void they experienced and how they don’t want to take the Eucharist for granted again,” Schlarb said. 

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