New York, Boston Archdioceses: Mask Up at Holiday Season Masses, by Joe Bukuras

By Joe Bukuras, Catholic News Agency

Joseph Bukuras is a staff writer at the Catholic News Agency. Joe holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from The Catholic University of America. He has interned in the U.S. House of Representatives, on a U.S. Senate campaign, in the Massachusetts State House of Representatives, and at the Susan B. Anthony List. He is based out of the Boston area.

Boston, Mass., Dec 13, 2021 / 16:26 pm – Citing a spike in COVID-19 cases and a “likely increase” in cases during the holiday season, the Archdiocese of Boston is reimplementing its mask mandate from Dec. 18 to Jan. 17, 2022. Meanwhile, the Archdiocese of New York has directed parishioners to follow the statewide mask mandate recently implemented by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

The Boston mandate, announced by the archdiocese on Dec. 9, applies to those attending public Masses, weddings, and funerals. The only exceptions are children under the age of 5, who are not required to wear masks, while children under the age of 2 “should not wear masks,” the announcement says. …