Fears over swine flu lead churches to take action

From Wales-

SOME Welsh churches are suspending Holy Communion in a bid to stop the spread of swine flu.

Some Anglican and Catholic churches are suspending the sharing of the consecrated wine in a chalice during the pandemic.

Both the Church in Wales and Welsh Catholic dioceses said they had not yet issued any compulsory advice, but acknowledged that some parishes had decided to take their own action.

The move comes as swine flu continued to decline in Wales, although another person – a 24-year-old woman from Cardiff – is being treated in hospital.

The Church in Wales has published Department for Communities and Local Government swine flu guidance for churches. It states that distribution of the consecrated bread at Holy Communion will continue, but that communion should not be given on the tongue and high standards of hand hygiene must be adopted.

The Government advises that the administration of the common cup should be suspended “until the danger has passed”. A Church in Wales spokeswoman stressed this is only advice and it was up to individual priests and parishes to decide what to do.

Members of the congregation at a service led by the Archbishop of Wales at St Mary’s Church, Seven Sisters, in Neath, were told that they could not share the consecrated wine and the bread was placed on the hand rather than tongue.

Tom Marston, who was at the service, said: “Following the advice of the Church in Wales, only sharing of the bread was taken during this Holy Communion, and this practice will continue until the swine flu pandemic is over. This is because of the virulent nature of the virus, which can exist on silver and in wine long enough to infect others, and the hidden nature of the virus which means you could infect others before you knew you had it.”

More here-

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2009/08/13/fears-over-swine-flu-lead-churches-to-take-action-91466-24396341/