DC Mayor Muriel Bowser on Wednesday scrapped the 50-person limitation on gatherings at houses of worship that was introduced last month as part of COVID-19 safety measures.
The move comes less than a week after the District and Mayor Bowser were sued by the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington over church attendance caps linked to coronavirus restrictions.
According to Bowser’s new modification, places of worship are allowed to accommodate up to a maximum of 250 worshippers or reach 25 percent of their capacity.
However, the mayor’s order keeps discouraging large gatherings, saying some persons at large gatherings are likely to be exposed to the new coronavirus even if they follow safety guidelines like wearing face masks and practicing social distancing.
“Persons who attend large gatherings may think that they are freely assuming the risk of attending the gathering, but those whom they may infect have assumed no such risk. The larger the gathering, the more the exposure,” says the order. “A recent lawsuit appears to insist on a constitutional right to hold indoor worship services of even a thousand persons or more at the largest facilities, which flies in the face of all scientific and medical advice and will doubtlessly put parishioners in harm’s way.”
The change “Phase Two Limits on Large Gatherings” went into effect on Thursday, December 17.
The Archdiocese of Washington last week sued the District of Columbia and Mayor Bowser over the city’s coronavirus restrictions that affect church gatherings.
The lawsuit filed on the eve of Christmas argued that the 50-person cap for houses of worship was “arbitrary”, “unscientific”, and “discriminatory.”
“Indeed, if the Archdiocese were to fill its churches with library books, washing machines, exercise bikes, restaurant tables, or shopping stalls instead of pews, the District would allow many more people to enter and remain for an unlimited amount of time,” said the Archdiocese in the lawsuit, claiming that half of DC’s Catholic parishes have the capacity to welcome 500 or more worshippers.
Washington Archdiocese Files Lawsuit Over COVID-Related Restrictions