COVID-19 AGREEMENT

Parishioner Agreement for Coming to Church during Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic

  1. I understand the following about the COVID-19 illness caused by a coronavirus:
  • it has been declared by the World Health Organization as a pandemic;
  • it is highly contagious and is known to spread mainly from person-to-person contact through droplets in the air or touching an infected surface;
  • according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control, some people have a “higher risk of severe illness due to infection”, including people aged 65 or older, or who have any of the following: chronic lung disease, asthma, serious heart conditions, severe obesity, kidney disease, liver disease, diabetes, are immunocompromised, are undergoing kidney dialysis. These people are strongly encouraged by the CDC, Illinois, and the Metropolis to stay home and not come to the church for now, for their own safety;
  • although the Parish to trying its best to provide as safe an environment as it reasonably can for allowing worshippers to return to church during this pandemic, it cannot guarantee that someone will not be exposed to or infected by the virus in church;
  • the medical knowledge about the virus is constantly changing and being updated;
  • symptoms of the sickness include fever, cough, chills, shortness of breath, sore throat, runny nose, loss of sense of taste or smell;
  • someone can be infected with the virus but not show any symptoms (is “asymptomatic”);
  • at this time there is neither a vaccine nor a cure for the virus;
  • getting infected with this virus can lead to serious illness or even death;

 

  1. I can say the following about me and my family members who want to attend church with me:
  • as far as I know, none of us are infected, have come into contact with an infected person or have otherwise been exposed to the virus in the last 2 weeks. I agree to confirm this prior to any future church services we attend;
  • none of us have any of the following symptoms: fever, cough, chills, shortness of breath, sore throat, runny nose, loss of sense of taste or smell, or similar symptoms; I agree to confirm this prior to any future church services we attend;
  • we want to come to church despite the risks;
  • if any of us are in the category of a “higher risk of severe illness due to infection” as described above we will consider staying home;

 

  1. We promise the following:
  • we will not come to church if any of our immediate family members have fever, cough, chills, shortness of breath, sore throat, runny nose, loss of sense of taste or smell, or otherwise feel sick;
  • We have read and understood the Safety Policies and Procedures issued by the Parish and agree to follow them;
  • When at church we will follow all the instructions of the ushers;
  • We will keep at least 6 feet away from all other people at all times, except our immediate family;
  • We agree to have our temperature taken before entering the church and if it is too high–in the discretion of the Parish’s medical advisor–we agree that we will not be allowed to enter, for the safety of the parish;
  • If we have children with us in church, we will keep them in the pew with us at all times;
  • In exchange for being allowed to come to church, to agree to be responsible for any health risks related to being at the church;
  • We will not sue Saints Peter and Paul Church (the Parish) if we get sick due to attending church, even if an usher or other church employee or volunteer does something wrong by mistake, and we will not seek to hold the Parish legally responsible in court, arbitration or other places if any of us get sick.