Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
California Lays Out Pandemic Rules for Church Reopenings
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
May 26, 2020

Share

LOS ANGELES — Rabbi Shalom Rubanowitz looks forward to reopening his synagogue doors — if his congregation can balance the laws of God and California during the coronavirus pandemic.

On Monday, the state released a framework that will permit counties to allow in-person worship services. They include limiting worshipers to 100 or less, taking everyone’s temperature, limiting singing and group recitations and not sharing prayer books or other items.

The Orthodox congregation of Shul on the Beach in Los Angeles County’s Venice Beach will follow the guidelines, consulting with rabbinical authorities who place a high importance on preservation of life, Rubanowitz said.

“We can do it, it’s just a question of how,” he said, noting that Orthodox believers are barred from using technology or carrying many personal items on the Sabbath.

The path of reopening provides “a great deal of hope,” he added. “That’s what people need.”

Houses of worship are the latest focus as the state eases mid-March stay-at-home orders that shut down all but essential services and kept 40 million Californians at home to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Social distancing precautions are cited for reducing rates of hospitalizations and deaths and most of California’s 58 counties are deep into phase two of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s four-stage plan to restart the battered economy. The state on Monday cleared the way for in-store shopping to resume statewide with social distancing restrictions, although counties get to decide whether to permit it.

Individual counties also will decide whether to allow the reopening of in-person services for churches, mosques, synagogues and other religious institutions. In-person religious services are relegated to phase three, which Newsom had said could be weeks away.

Photo fo Gavin Newsom
FILE – In this Friday, May 22, 2020, file photo, California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a news conference at the Veterans Home of California in Yountville. California says churches can resume in-person services but the congregations will be limited to less than 100 and worshippers should wear masks, avoid sharing prayer books and skip the collection plate. The state Department of Public Health released a framework Monday, May 25 for county health officials to permit houses of worship to reopen. Most have been limited to online and remote services since March, when Gov. Gavin Newsom’s stay-at-home order took effect to slow the spread of the coronavirus.. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, Pool, File)

Worshippers Who Are Allowed to Return Will Find Some Jarring Changes

But they could come much sooner under the guidelines. Counties that are having success controlling the virus are likely to move quickly. Others with outbreaks — such as Los Angeles County, which has about 60% of California’s roughly 3,800 deaths — may choose to delay.

Orange County supervisors may consider a resolution being introduced Tuesday to reopen houses of worship next weekend under federal and state health guidelines.

Worshippers who are allowed to return will find some jarring changes. The state guidelines limit gatherings to 25% of building capacity or 100 people, whichever is lower. Choirs aren’t recommended. Neither are shaking hands or hugging. Worshipers are urged to wear masks, avoid sharing prayer books or prayer rugs, keep their distance in pews and skip the collection plate. Large gatherings such as for concerts, weddings and funerals should be avoided.

The guidelines say even with physical distancing, in-person worship carries a higher risk of transmitting the virus and increasing the numbers of hospitalizations and deaths and recommend houses of worship shorten services.

Each county will have to adopt rules for services to resume within their jurisdictions and then the guidelines will be reviewed by state health officials after 21 days.

Some church leaders aren’t eager to reopen. The Rev. Amos Brown, pastor of Third Baptist Church in San Francisco and head of the local NAACP chapter, led a protest Monday against reopening.

“We are not going to be rushing back to church,” he said by phone, noting that many leaders of his denomination have been sickened or died nationwide. Freedom of religion is “not the freedom to kill folks, not the freedom to put people in harm’s way. That’s insane,” he said.

Photo of people praying
FILE – In this Feb. 3, 2017, file photo, Aaqib Rahman, lower left, prays with his father Muhammad Rahman at the Islamic Center of Southern California in Los Angeles. The California Department of Public Health released a framework under which county health departments can approve the reopening of churches, mosques, synagogues and other houses of worship that have mostly shuttered their doors since Gov. Gavin Newsom’s March stay-at-home order designed to slow the spread of the coronavirus.California churches can resume in-person services but worshippers will be limited to 100 people and they should wear masks, avoid sharing prayer books and skip the collection plate under state guidelines released Monday, May 25. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)

Some of the Largest Religious Institutions in California Are Taking a More Cautious Approach

But a few churches have defiantly reopened their doors already, a handful have sued the governor, and several thousand were threatening to ignore his orders and reopen for Pentecost on May 31.

Cross Culture Christian Center, a Lodi church that defied the governor and then sued him, said the guidelines were welcome but didn’t change anything.

“Our church and places of worship across California have suffered greatly because our leaders chose to marginalize and criminalize faith-based gatherings,” Pastor Jon Duncan said in a statement. “If we are to remain free, we must never allow this to happen again.”

Some places of worship around the country opened over the weekend after President Donald Trump declared them essential and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released guidelines for reopening faith organizations.

But some of the largest religious institutions in California are taking a more cautious approach.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange announced last week that it is phasing in public Masses beginning June 14, starting with restricted numbers of worshipers. At first, choirs will be banned, fonts won’t contain holy water and parishioners won’t perform rituals where they must touch each other.

“We know that God is with us, but at the same time we have to be careful and make sure that we protect each other in this challenging time,” Bishop Kevin Vann said Friday.

Two church services that already were held without authorization have been sources of outbreaks; one in Mendocino County and the other in Butte County.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death. As of Monday, California had at least 94,558 confirmed cases of COVID-19, more than 3,000 hospitalizations and 3,795 deaths.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

CHP Car Struck by Drunk Driver While Investigating Another Crash

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Ejected From Car Dies Off McKinley Avenue

DON'T MISS

‘Leave It the Way It Is’: Off-Roaders, Hikers React to Proposal to Change 1.4M Acres of Sierra Forest

DON'T MISS

Yankees Retain Cole, Add $36 Million Extension to Keep Ace

DON'T MISS

5 Reasons Early Voting Is Overwhelmed With Falsehoods

DON'T MISS

Christian McCaffrey Returns to Practice for the 49ers From Achilles Tendon Injury

DON'T MISS

California Sues LA Suburb for Temporary Ban of Homeless Shelters

DON'T MISS

You May Have Blocked Someone on X but Now They Can See Your Public Posts Anyway

DON'T MISS

Some Republican-Led States Refuse to Let Justice Department Monitors Into Polling Places

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Arrest Suspect in Fatal NW Apartment Shooting

UP NEXT

Trump Threatens 25% Tariff on Mexico to Curb Immigration

UP NEXT

Big Spenders: These Companies Are Giving the Most to California Legislative Candidates

UP NEXT

Immediate Threat: Mussel Invades California’s Delta, First Time in North America

UP NEXT

Lyft Pays $2.1 Million to Settle Case Alleging the Ride-Hailing Service Deceived Drivers

UP NEXT

Southern California County Official Pleads Guilty to Bribery Charge in COVID Funds Scheme

UP NEXT

Visalia Rollerblader Suffered Major Injuries After Being Struck by Vehicle

UP NEXT

Fresno County Man Indicted for Possessing Stolen Guns

UP NEXT

Anti-Semitic Incident at Oakland Cafe Raises Concerns About Rising Intolerance

UP NEXT

Schwarzenegger Endorses Harris, Warns Against Another Trump Term

UP NEXT

Will Noncitizens Be Able to Vote? This California City Will Decide Their Fate

Yankees Retain Cole, Add $36 Million Extension to Keep Ace

12 hours ago

5 Reasons Early Voting Is Overwhelmed With Falsehoods

12 hours ago

Christian McCaffrey Returns to Practice for the 49ers From Achilles Tendon Injury

12 hours ago

California Sues LA Suburb for Temporary Ban of Homeless Shelters

12 hours ago

You May Have Blocked Someone on X but Now They Can See Your Public Posts Anyway

13 hours ago

Some Republican-Led States Refuse to Let Justice Department Monitors Into Polling Places

13 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest Suspect in Fatal NW Apartment Shooting

13 hours ago

Fresno Murder Suspect Stopped in Las Vegas, Others Wanted

14 hours ago

Trump’s Crowds Are Dwindling as His Campaign Winds Down

14 hours ago

Trump Threatens 25% Tariff on Mexico to Curb Immigration

14 hours ago

CHP Car Struck by Drunk Driver While Investigating Another Crash

A driver suspected of being under the influence crashed into a California Highway Patrol car early Sunday, officials said. Officers were inv...

9 hours ago

A driver suspected of DUI crashed into a parked California Highway Patrol car at a fatal crash scene in Fresno County, sustaining minor injuries and later being cited. (Fresno County SO)
9 hours ago

CHP Car Struck by Drunk Driver While Investigating Another Crash

fresno
10 hours ago

Fresno Man Ejected From Car Dies Off McKinley Avenue

10 hours ago

‘Leave It the Way It Is’: Off-Roaders, Hikers React to Proposal to Change 1.4M Acres of Sierra Forest

New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole throws against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the first inning in Game 5 of the baseball World Series, Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024, in New York. (AP/Ashley Landis)
12 hours ago

Yankees Retain Cole, Add $36 Million Extension to Keep Ace

Voters cast their ballots at Desert Breeze Community Center in Las Vegas during the last day of in-person early voting in Nevada on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. Nearly 75 million people have cast early ballots, making their voices heard amid worry about the process, the outcome and democracy itself. (Bridget Bennett/The New York Times)
12 hours ago

5 Reasons Early Voting Is Overwhelmed With Falsehoods

12 hours ago

Christian McCaffrey Returns to Practice for the 49ers From Achilles Tendon Injury

12 hours ago

California Sues LA Suburb for Temporary Ban of Homeless Shelters

13 hours ago

You May Have Blocked Someone on X but Now They Can See Your Public Posts Anyway

Search

Send this to a friend