VATICAN CITY (RNS) — After nearly 50 days of a strict lockdown in their homes, Italians flocked to parks and strolled the streets on Monday (May 4), the first day of “Phase Two,” when the Italian government loosened some of the restrictions put in place to limit the spread of the coronavirus.
Over the weekend, the Italian Catholic bishops, after a prolonged and sometimes strained debate with local authorities, also secured a deal with the government with the hopes that by the end of May, Italian Catholics will also be able to attend Mass.
“It feels like a dream,” a woman told Religion News Service on Monday, her voice muffled by a protective mask as she enjoyed a walk around the grounds of the Villa Pamphili in Rome.
After nearly three months of staying indoors, the cohesion that marked the worst of the pandemic had begun to wear off. As the “curve” of rising coronavirus cases flattened, fewer and fewer Romans joined to sing from their balconies in the evenings with neighbors, and more and more of them attempted to leave their homes, testing the boundaries of the ever-changing decrees and regulations.
Catholics, many of whom were disappointed to have been denied in-person services since before Easter, have also begun to raise questions about religious freedom as the government refused to allow them to attend Mass in the first wave of openings.
In Italy, which still has…
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