VATICAN CITY (RNS) — In an online statement, conservative Catholic Cardinal Raymond Burke said that access to Mass and the sacraments must not be denied even as the world faces the coronavirus pandemic.
“In considering what is needed to live, we must not forget that our first consideration is our relationship with God,” Burke wrote in a letter published on his website Saturday (March 21).
“That is why it is essential for us, at all times and above all in times of crisis, to have access to our churches and chapels, to the Sacraments, and to public devotions and prayers.”
The U.S. cardinal has been a staunch critic of Pope Francis’ pontificate and was among the four cardinals who authored the “Dubia,” a document challenging the Holy Father about his cautious opening to allowing Communion for divorced and remarried couples in the 2016 apostolic exhortation “Amoris Laetitia.”
Burke resides in Italy, which has experienced the deadliest outbreak of the coronavirus, surpassing China. Almost 5,000 people have died in Italy and over 50,000 have been infected. On Saturday, 793 people died as a result of the virus, a trend that shows no signs of slowing, especially in the northern part of the country that was struck the hardest.
The Italian bishops conference initially banned all Masses and religious gatherings throughout the country in order to adhere to the safety…
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