Communion by hand, but no handshakes: mass in Miami amid virus crisis

MIAMI (HRNW) – At a Catholic church in Miami, people touch elbows, and take communion in their hands: it’s mass in the time of coronavirus.

Only about 100 mostly Hispanic faithful were at mass this Lenten Sunday at Miami’s Ermita de la Caridad; on a normal Sunday, three times as many parishioners flock in.

And there’s really nothing normal about this Sunday as the world is on edge over the virus which has killed more than 6,500 people around the globe, sparking border closures and sending many into protective isolation.

Three large containers of hand sanitizer at the entrance are all empty, and no one is wearing gloves or protective masks.

But when time comes for people to offer each other a sign of peace, usually done with handshakes, the virus makes itself felt: everyone waves, bumps elbows or just smiles and shrugs.