Catholic churches prepare for reopening

The Archdiocese of Portland has 124 parishes.

Weeks.

It's back to in- person mass... this weekend for some catholic churches.

Most church doors have been closed for indoor services since march 23rd... leaving many to hold drive-in services or to stream online.

Kezi 9 news reporter kennedy dendy shows us what this weekend will look like.

Archbishop: "we have made the decision to begin opening up our churches once again for the celebration of holy mass and the reception of holy communion at mass."

When this announcement was made tuesday by the archdiocese of portland...many were left wondering, what this will actually look like during a pandemic?

But archbishop alexander sample says not every church will reopen this weekend...it will happen when the time is right.

Archbishop: "the fact is that not every parish will be ready to go and open up their church for mass at the same time."

For now... there's a 25 person limit on those allowed inside the building.

And they're also increasing sanitation measures.

Communion will still be held...and some churches will even be offering more services than usual.

Bridge: to participate in these masses, you have to sign up in advance.

And those at-risk or concerned about their health are told to stick to watching the livestream from their own homes katie: "i think it's smart that they're going to do, you know, social distancing and making sure that if you're sick you know stay at home."

But jason davis... a spokesman for lane county public health.... said the hope is that people will understand the gravity of the situation.

He said the county recognizes the importance of faith in people's lives... but it's necessary to remain aware of the longterm and lasting impacts that this could have.

Reporting in springfield, kennedy dendy kezi 9