Update on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
On Tuesday, March 3rd, the Archdiocese of Toronto issued a memo to all parishes regarding the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation.
As of the time of this post, the Archdiocese is neither requiring nor recommending any liturgical changes, based on the guidance of City of Toronto Public Health, with whom they are working closely with the goal of acting responsibly based on credible information from reliable sources.
Parishioners are encouraged to practice healthy hygiene, such as frequent hand-washing, avoiding touching eyes/nose/mouth, and sneezing/coughing into your sleeve. We also recommend staying home if you are sick; illness is a valid reason for missing Mass. More information is available from the provincial website (Ontario.ca/COVID-19) and the Archdiocese at https://www.archtoronto.org/media-centre/news-archive/chancery-news/update-on-coronavirus
However, Our Lady of Lourdes Parish wishes to encourage all parishioners to prayerfully consider, for the common good during this time:
-Receiving communion in the hand instead of on the tongue; and
-Exchanging the sign of peace during Mass without physical contact.
Also, as a precautionary measure we will be leaving empty the holy water fonts at the entrances of the church.
Please continue to pray for all those impacted by the coronavirus. We will continue to keep you updated.