SAN ANTONIO – For the first time in two months, Catholics across Texas are participating in Mass in person. The COVID-19 pandemic shut church doors to help stop the spread of the virus and keep vulnerable populations safe.


What You Need To Know


  • Many Catholic churches have been closed because of pandemic

  • Some are starting to reopen as restrictions ease

  • Weekend masses were held again with social distancing

With the recent blessing over the city of San Antonio by Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller, Catholic churches in the Alamo City celebrated the reopening of mass.

Donned with face masks and hand sanitizer readily available, parishioners at St. Ann's Catholic Church kept six feet apart during service over the weekend, in addition to being seated every other row. The mass was "lightly attended" according to Father Larry Christian.

"Even though we know some of us can't be here because of age and health conditions— they can’t attend yet— we’re keeping them in our prayers. But it's just wonderful to be able to come back and celebrate mass," said parishioner Joe Alvarez.

Alvarez is a lifelong member of St. Ann’s Catholic Church, who said attending service via the live stream just wasn't the same.

“I'm Roman Catholic of course, and this is my church, it's my home," Alvarez said. "You don't really know how much you miss people until you don't see them for two months, like I said, we're used to seeing each other every week and some of us on a daily basis. [St. Ann's] is a beacon of hope and goodness. And we have a long history and a long tradition of good solid parishioners and a good faith-filled community.”

Father Christian has implemented steps to safely receive communion— for now parishioners are handed the wafer and immediately put it in their mouths themselves.

“They’ll actually be able to take the actual Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ, via the Eucharist... You can take spiritual communion on live stream but you can't do it physically as you can here in mass,” Alvarez said. “It was really beautiful to be able to come and celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in person.”

If you still don’t wish to attend in person yet, that’s quite alright, the live streaming is still there for you for many churches via social media.