Red Zones (High Risk) Update

January 14, 2021
The red zone map for the week of January 11:
218 of our parishes (83.8%) are in the red zone.  That is up slightly (3 parishes) from last week.
Melrose, Watertown, and Wayland passed out of the red zone this week.
Dover, Hopkinton, Marblehead, Sherborn, and Somerville passed into the red zone this week.

For Parishes in the red zone, only Mass and other worship services are allowed – no indoor meetings and no in-person faith formation is permitted.

Parishes in communities the red category will be required to:

  1. Take the temperature of every attendee as they come to attend all indoor Masses. The infra-red thermometers issued by the Archdiocese, or equivalent devices, should be used. Any temperature of 100.4 Fahrenheit (38.0 Celsius) or greater is considered to be a fever by the CDC. Temperature checks should be done as discreetly as possible, and in a location where the thermometers and the people using them are not left standing in the sun, which could impact the reading. If someone registers a temperature of 100.4 or greater, please show them the respect of taking them aside and informing them quietly that they have a fever, and that they should contact their physician. Direct them to a side or second door to exit, so that they are not crossing paths with others waiting to be checked. This applies to weekday Masses and funerals and baptisms and other worship events as well.
  2. Registration for Masses is required. Take (and keep for at least fourteen days) a good list of all people who enter the church for Masses (Sunday and weekday), funerals, baptisms, and any other events, for the sake of contact tracing. This applies to outdoor Masses as well.
  3. The current rules for confessions need to be applied strongly – masks, and six feet or more between the confessor and the penitent. Temperature checks and lists should not be taken for confessions.
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