Some of Boston’s most prominent places of worship say they have no plans to change their mask requirements that are already in place, though Acting Mayor Kim Janey made an exception for places of worship in her new indoor mask mandate.
Boston's largest synagogue, Temple Israel, re-instated its mask mandate two weeks ago, executive director Dan Deutsch said.
"We'll be keeping that mask requirement in place for the foreseeable future," he said. "We're going to keep looking at local case counts and making decisions together as a group as we move forward."
Temple Israel, like many other places of worship in Massachusetts and around the world, is also offering online services to maintain social distance. Last year’s services for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year that is typically celebrated in September, were fully online. Deutsch looks forward to welcoming some of their congregation to celebrate in person in a couple of weeks.
The Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Center in Roxbury — New England's largest mosque — says they will continue requiring masks and social distancing at all of their daily prayers.
Local Catholic churches do not require vaccinated people to wear masks or socially distance inside, as of Wednesday. The Archdiocese of Boston’s spokesperson said in an email that they're reviewing their protocols and he “anticipates new protocols in the days ahead.”
A Janey spokesperson cited legal reasons for exempting places of worship from the mandate in a statement to Boston.com. A judge’s ruling in October 2020 stopped Colorado from limiting church occupancies or mandating masks on the grounds of religious freedom. The administration still encourages “faith communities to wear masks indoors,” the spokesperson said.
The new mask mandate goes into effect Friday.
