Catholic Group Holds Prayer Vigil To Reopen Churches

CHICAGO, IL -- A newly formed group of Chicago Catholics will gather in front of Holy Name Cathedral at State and Superior Streets to pray for a reopening of churches in the Archdiocese of Chicago. The vigil starts at noon, Friday May 1. Face coverings and social distancing will be observed.

Members of the St. Charles Borromeo Society want Cardinal Blase Cupich to intervene with Gov. J.B. Pritzker to ease restrictions so that churches could begin to open. The group also requested a meeting with Cupich to come up with a plan to make Mass and the sacraments available to the faithful.

Ann Scheidler, vice-president of the Pr0-Life Action League, an organization founded by her husband, Joseph, whose sole intent is to end abortion, said the cardinal turned down her group's request for a meeting. According to Sheidler, the cardinal stated that it was not an opportune time for such a meeting. Cupich suspended public celebrations of mass and closed Catholic schools on March 13 at the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak.

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“He’s been incommunicado with the diocese,” Scheidler said of the cardinal. “We want to see if the archdiocese is working on a plan and if we can be part that plan.”

The group maintains that Catholics need spiritual guidance during the pandemic and access to the sacraments. She points to Galvaston, TX diocese, which recently reopened at 25-percent capacity, with pastors deciding if face coverings should be worn at Mass. Scheidler thinks the Archdiocese of Chicago could do the same.

“Unfortunately our churches were never packed,” Scheidler said. “People are going to be afraid for a while so no big crowds are going to show up.”

Members of the St. Charles Borromeo Society, named for the 16th century Italian archbishop who tended to the sick during an outbreak of bubonic plague, have a list of ideas for social distancing that could be applied in a safe reopening of Chicago archdiocesan churches.

“We could make great use of ushers when no one in the church, numbering pews and blocking off every other row,” Scheidler said. “Dispense with the kiss of peace and leave by row so that people aren’t bunched up at the exits.”

Some churches are holding parking lot services where people participate in public gatherings sitting in their cars. Those locked out of their churches for over six weeks are anxious for a plan.

She says her group is paying close attention to a federal lawsuit filed Thursday by a Rockford-area church to toss out Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order. On Thursday, Pritzker amended his executive order after the lawsuit was filed by the Beloved Church in Lena asking to be allowed to meet for religious services, which were considered “non- essential” due to COVID-19 concerns. The governor extended the order to include a paragraph allowing people to leave home “to engage in the free exercise of religion," provided that gatherings did not exceed ten people and places of worship complied with social distancing requirements.

Scheidler's group vows to gather at Holy Name Cathedral every Friday at noon until Chicago archdiocesan churches reopen.

The Archdiocese of Chicago issued a statement saying it was following the guidance of “competent civil authorities and agencies to ensure the safety of the faithful, clergy, staff and volunteers.”

“We are engaged in planning how we might reopen our parishes and schools when the Stay at Home order is lifted or modified to allow the safe resumption of services and classes. Even though we’re physically isolated, we do not need to be spiritually isolated. We have provided numerous ways, including online liturgies in multiple languages, for Catholics to stay hopeful and prayerful and to be reminded that God is truly with us in this time. We encourage them to find these resources at COVID-19 pastoral resources."

The St. Charles Borromeo group urges other Catholics to launch similar efforts in their own parishes. For information on the project, visit OpenOurChurches. A similar group in the Diocese of Joliet will hold a candlelight vigil at 7 p.m. on May 1, at St. Raymond Cathedral.

“The important thing is to get in there and get the sacraments,” Scheidler said.

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