Bishop Athanasius Schneider:
This is a prescription for hygiene. The priest, of course, can purify his hands, and it is meaningful. But I think that wearing a mask during Mass, by the priest, and giving Holy Communion, is not worthy of the holiness of this moment and diminishes the seriousness of the proper conditions for giving Holy Communion.
When people are kneeling and the priest is standing, there is no danger of contagion. He does not need to wear a mask. I mean, it is more dangerous, in terms of health security, if the priest is on the same level as the people when they are standing. So, it is evident that the faithful should kneel, and then the priest does not need to wear a mask.
We have to, on one hand, apply all the necessary health security measures, but on the other hand, we must maintain the dignity and worthiness of the Liturgy. We cannot turn it into a kind of masquerade with masks. This is unworthy.
Follow-up question:
The first part of the question was about “should priests sanitize their hands immediately before giving Holy Communion?”
Bishop Athanasius Schneider:
It depends on the prescriptions. If the bishop prescribes these measures, the priest can do this, but it is not necessary for every Holy Communion. Only when the priest is touching, perhaps, the lips of the people, should he purify his fingers. But in this case, he should first wash his hands with water, because there could be some particles and fragments of the Body of Christ.
You cannot place the Body of Christ in a disinfecting liquid. This is impossible. So, first in water, then in the disinfecting liquid, and then once more in water, because the disinfecting liquid could have a smell, such as from alcohol, which is problematic. So, it is complicated.
But if the bishop prescribes these measures, in this case, we can obey the bishop, provided that he permits us to give Communion on the tongue. So, in this case, if it’s an emergency, maybe we, as priests, can follow these prescriptions.
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