Tuesday, March 30, 2021

Health Department Issues Church Service Guidelines

 The Mississippi State Department of Health issued the following guidelines for faith-based services. 

The Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) has now issued updated guidance on safer faith-based gatherings and worship services.  

 

To prevent the spread of COVID-19 and to protect the vulnerable, the safest options continue to be virtual or outdoor services. 

 

The MSDH recommends that everyone 16 and older be vaccinated against COVID-19, even if the individual has been previously infected with COVID-19. 

 

For those meeting indoors, MSDH recommends the following guidelines: 

1)       Everyone 65 years of age or older should be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to attending in-person worship services (full vaccination is considered 2 weeks after the second dose of a two-dose vaccine, or 2 weeks after receiving a single-dose vaccine). 

2)       Anyone 16 or older with high-risk medical conditions should be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to attending in-person worship services (two weeks after completing vaccination).  

3)       Indoor safety guidance: 

    1. All congregants should wear a face mask at all times during in-person services. 
    2. All congregants should maintain six feet of separation from persons outside of their household. Household members may sit together. 
    3. Congregants should not gather in close groups while entering or exiting the building. 
    4. Congregants should use hand sanitizer prior to or upon entry of the building. 
    5. Singing is a high-risk activity that can quickly spread viral particles. It is preferable to not have choirs; however, if choirs are performing, they should be small in number, masked, and separated by six feet. 
    6. Those in classroom settings such as Sunday school or study groups should maintain six feet of separation and wear a mask at all times. 
    7. As appropriate, alternatives to shared cups for communion should be pursued. 
    8. The use of hymn books or prayer books is acceptable so long as congregants practice proper hand hygiene upon entering. 

4)       Additional procedures to protect congregants are encouraged based on local congregation leadership decisions.  


34 comments:

Anonymous said...

Like any of that is going to happen. Churches haven’t been doing any of this since last summer. Everyone is over it. If you die, then oh well.

Anonymous said...

Nope. Take your masks and shove it.

Anonymous said...

@11:25am - Freeeeeeeeeeeeedooooooooooommmmmm (from inconvenience and to kill yourself and others).... MURICA

Anonymous said...

First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist

Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist

Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist

Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew

Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me

Anonymous said...

There have been churches in Jackson who had death outbreaks after Christmas...as always its shoved out of sight and out of mind..

Anonymous said...

PASS. I'm enjoying watching services on Facebook on Sunday morning in my comfy bed. As long as my pastor provides this option I won't be returning to in-person service anytime soon.

Anonymous said...

@11:45
Shit is not working and never worked, despite your fear and delusions. You are smarter than me, you are just more fearful and obedient.

Anonymous said...

Most churches follow the guidelines religiously.

Anonymous said...

I’ve got a better idea. Let’s disband the health department, fire all the employees, and cancel their retirement.

Anonymous said...

We will be back good as new by the start of Ramadan...

Anonymous said...

F!Y!

Anonymous said...

Government's attempt to interfere with the people's free exercise of religion violates the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights! It's not hard to understand.

Anonymous said...

If the government told everyone to crawl on all fours to avoid the Rona, the sheep would be crawling all over the place !!!

Anonymous said...

@12:16 - rare of someone to admit you aren’t as smart as the other person in an argument, that’s big of you to admit even anonymously. Clearly the most ignorant people are often too dumb to know just how ill-informed they are, but it’s good when you can admit your ignorance and try to learn the facts before digging your heels into a position you don’t understand. Not sure why you still think the smarter person is fearful and obedient, but maybe you meant those as a compliment as anyone who understands the severity of this would clearly have some degree of fear and understand that it will take a group effort of following protocols to defeat it.

Anonymous said...

First Tater drops the mask mandate and then issues this. Go figure...

Anonymous said...

Wearing a mask is like a Heil Hitler.

Anonymous said...

@1:23pm - Well said. Unfortunately, it’s too long and you used too many big words.

Anonymous said...

I teach pre-k sunday school (av. 15-18 children and adults per week) at a large church in a top 5 MS city. Since Thanksgiving, all of the teachers have had the kungflu, along with many of the families with children represented in our class. Not a single death. Not a single lingering health issue. Even have some with serious health conditions. We're all fine...oh and not a single case which could be traced to contact with an infected person at church. So, y'all keep listening to the "weeping experts" on these matters. We'll keep taking reasonable precautions (including vax, and masks/distancing for a short time longer)...and keep living our lives.

Thank God for Mississippi.

Sol Juette said...

I asked my Doc, when is all of this C19 stuff over? He said how the hell should I know, Im not a politician....

Anonymous said...

The government (federal, state and local) needs to get their nose out of a protected right to assemble and worship God. I am growing more aware day by day how we all (myself included) went along with the restraints during COVID.

Sad times indeed. Our Founding Fathers would truly be ashamed of us all!

Anonymous said...

12:04
“death outbreaks...”?
What in the hell is a “death outbreak”?

Anonymous said...

@2:18 - sounds like you need a competent doc if that’s true. Let me know if you need a recommendation.

Calm Down said...

At my church, we're all members of the same family. That's kind of the point of church. Problem solved.

Anonymous said...

2:13, you might be good at teaching the Bible, but you clearly don’t understand statistics. Just because it didn’t happen around you does not mean it never happens. I have never seen someone chocking to death, or drowning in a pool, or being killed in a car crash, being shot accidentally, or being electrocuted at an outlet, but I still try to protect my kids from it. If you really think that things that you have not witnesses yourself cannot happen, then I would definitely not let you supervise my children, not even for an hour Sunday morning.

Anonymous said...

" The Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) has now issued updated guidance on safer faith-based gatherings"

(I lay awake at night waiting for MSDH advice)

That's almost as goofy as the local TV guys & girls freaking-out about a possible thunderstorm two weeks away.
WEATHER ALERT ! WEATHER ALERT ! Hell, even one Jackson weather "person" repeatedly looked into the camera and said ... "Be sure you know what county you live in".

????

Are the citizens that ignorant ?

Apparently they are.

Back to the topic, most churches have enacted better covid protocols than all levels of government.




Anonymous said...

Hebrews 10:24-25
New King James Version
24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Anonymous said...

@7:52pm - Now don’t you be bringing the good book into a conversation about going to church in Mississippi. Also, we pick and choose the scripture that best fits our lifestyle and freedumbs, and that ain’t one of them. Piss off!

Anonymous said...

A. Mark me down for "NO" on that.
2. I agree with 11:25
c. "Death Outbreaks" ?? can I get some details on that? Congregation Name? Dates? Anything? .....

Anonymous said...

First Tater drops the mask mandate and then issues this. Go figure...<

Go figure that your reading comprehension skills are absolute crap.

Anonymous said...

@5:03 I agree, people do drown even though I don't witness each occurrence and I bet 2:13 does too.
But we don't close all the pools when it happens.

As you said yourself...its a parents job to teach safety and make good choices for their kids.
You can choose a pool with a life guard and you can choose to watch your kid as they swim.

That should be common sense parenting, not legally mandated.

I think most Sunday School teachers can keep a kid safe for an hour in a playroom, but luckily you are not forced by the government to use any specific teacher.

You may choose the one you feel safest with.

But you are also free to work yourself up into the vapors over this persons use of rather harmless anecdotal information if you must.

Anonymous said...

5:03 here, for 8:32

Thank you for your nice comment. I know it is tough to judge what level of preventive measures are right. Unfortunately the 550 000 dead cannot chime in this discussion....

Anonymous said...

The early church risked persecution, torture, and death to meet I defiance of the authorities. The modern emasculated church (some of it anyway) is afraid they might catch a bug and get sick if they meet.

The church and state both need to re-establish the separation of church and state. They are supposed to have completely different spheres of authority.

Not singing in church is like not kissing in the bedroom. Oh yeah, authorities at one point were telling people to wear a mask when th have sex. Abiding by such foolishness is not living. It's past time to ignore these people. I've been doing it since last May or so.

Anonymous said...

7:27: Your emotional appeal for the many who’ve sadly died doesn’t change the factual science that government lock downs and mask regulations don’t work.

Based on science, It would be more effective if the government made it illegal to be obese and forced us all to exercise.

Kyril said...

I thought Tater Tot ended the mask mandate.


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