By PAUL BINZ
The Valley Catholic
SAN JUAN — Since Bishop Daniel E. Flores lifted the dispensation for Sunday Mass attendance in March, the overall numbers of the faithful returning to church on the Lord’s Day have been quietly rising.
Bishop Flores first issued the dispensation March 13, 2020, as a precaution against the spread of COVID-19 virus as the pandemic erupted.
“I do hear from the pastors,” Bishop Flores said in a recent interview. “Some of them say that they’re slowly approaching pre-pandemic numbers in terms of just the numbers of people who are there; others it’s been a little slower. Others have told me that they have more people now than they had before the pandemic. So there’s a variety of different experiences going on in different parts of the Valley.”
Father Joel R. Flores of San Pedro Parish in Brownsville has seen a steady increase dating back to when churches reopened with safety protocols in late May of 2020 after closing for several weeks in the face of the pandemic.
“I would say that we are still anywhere between 60-70% of pre-pandemic numbers. This was a gradual increase from what began and around 30-40% when the church opened back up,” Father Flores said. “The numbers that have returned are comprised of many new folks, too. So this tells me our numbers of parishioners who were regularly attending prior to pandemic and have returned do not make up the majority of that 60% to 70%.
“I do not believe the dispensation or it being rescinded drastically affected our numbers,” Father Flores said. “The faithful have been quick to voice their reasons when they do return and seldom if ever does the reason involve the dispensation.
“They will say things like ‘I'm so glad we finally came back, we've wanted to for a while, but we just kept saying 'next week' until I had to put my foot down and say 'enough,' we've been away too long!’”
In McAllen, Msgr. Gustavo Barrera of Our Lady of Sorrows Parish said attendance there is still down – something he attributes to continued reliance on televised and livestreamed Masses.
“We are not back to where we were,” Msgr. Barrera said. “People still say that they don’t come to church because they are watching Mass on TV.”
“There should be an advertisement which states that the TV Mass is strictly for the sick and others who cannot get to church. Another statement which says that the dispensation has been lifted.”
Synodal responses echoed Msgr. Barrera. The “Synthesis of Diocesan Phase Consultations” report cited a “concern of low Mass attendance.”
“There has been a slow response of the community to return to Mass as COVID-19 protocols have eased since the lifting of the dispensation of the obligation to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation,” the report noted on Page 5. “Some reported feeling the creative approaches parishes took to engage parishioners during the beginning of the pandemic, especially with live-streaming Masses, were now a hindrance and an excuse for parishioners not to return to Mass and activities in-person. The live-streamed Masses were initially used this way to reach out to and engage those that were homebound during the stay-at-home orders from local authorities.”
At one San Benito church, attendance varies by the Mass .
“The Mass attendance at our parish has increased, but we are not still at our 100% capacity yet,” said Father Luis Tinajero of St. Benedict Parish. “We are probably at 70% in general (all the Masses combined), but there are Masses in which there is more participation.”
Bishop Flores noted that a variety of factors can affect attendance even at the same church on a given Sunday.
“It just depends … on the hour, and the Masses,” he said. “If it’s a largely Spanish-speaking community … you’re not going to get nearly as many at the English Mass as at the Spanish Mass.”
That was borne out on a recent Sunday at Our Lady of Guadalupe parish in Brownsville, where the noon Mass in Spanish nearly filled the church.
“And it’s summertime,” Bishop Flores said, with vacation season in full swing.
In fact, Our Lady, Star of the Sea parish in Port Isabel has benefitted from its location near South Padre Island as a vacation destination, according to its pastor, Father Jesse Garza.
“We are operating normally now, thanks to our local parishioners and those friends who visit us during the summer and winter,” Father Garza said.
“Our parish community depends mainly on those people visiting from all over the country. During summer we get people from the Valley – Rio Grande City, La Joya, Mission, McAllen, Weslaco, etc., who reside temporarily on the Island or make their weekend trips to this side of our diocese,” Father Garza said. “Many more come from San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, and the Hill Country; from El Paso, Eagle Pass, etc. Also, our annual visitors from the Midwest and Canada – our Winter Texans.
“Now that we have eased on the protocols (not requiring masks for those who are fully vaccinated, etc.), they feel more at home,” Father Garza said. “But they never stopped visiting us. There were times when we had reached our full capacity at a given Mass, and we had to close the doors on many (visitors and locals). Still, we had full capacity Mass attendance.
“Our local parishioners are back. Some of our older folks have not returned for fear or anxiety, but they are very few. So we reach out to them via telephone or a quick visit.”
For Bishop Flores, the news is mostly good.
“For the most part, people are more participatory,” he said. “I think one sign is that parish festivals have been very, very well attended. People are participating in the life of the Church more that way.”
All in all, he said, the diocese’s parishes are “pretty close to the pre-pandemic” levels of people participating at Mass.
“Some are not quite there yet,” he said. “Some are even a little over.”