Will handshakes for the sign of peace in church be replaced by a fist bump?
Or will the new sign of peace be the pump of a raised fist, with the phrase, "Peace out, yo."
One North American diocese, the Catholic Diocese of Winnipeg, has already banned handshakes between churchgoers, telling parishioners to substitute the grasp with a bow of the head.
"Nobody wants to be sick. ... People still want to worship God, so we want to be together," the Rev. Sam Argenziano told CBC News.
Well, nothing as drastic as a ban on a church handshake is on the horizon locally, but area churches have raised the issue of how to keep parishioners as healthy as possible as the flu and swine flu seasons kick in.
So far, according to pastors at several local churches, there hasn't been a noticeable decline in church attendance, although flu cases are starting to crop up.
In an Oct. 2 letter to churches in the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, Bishop David A. Zubik wrote that "it is a wise pastoral practice to remind parishioners that each person should be responsible for taking precautions as he or she sees fit."
That, Zubik said, means parishioners who aren't feeling well can choose to stay home. It's also a personal choice as to whether they feel comfortable receiving a Communion wafer or wine.
"Similarly, it would be good to remind parishioners that there is no single gesture required for the sign of peace," Zubik wrote. "If, during the flu season, a handshake or an embrace raise concerns, a bow is a perfectly acceptable means — at any time of year — to express our peace in Jesus Christ before we accept the Eucharist."
Parishioners also should have tissues or handkerchiefs with them and use and dispose of them properly, Zubik's letter said.
The Rev. John Dickey of First Presbyterian Church in New Brighton and United Presbyterian Church in Ambridge said there hasn't been any discussion about changing the parishioner greeting at New Brighton. Ambridge parishioners don't have a time of greeting, he said.
Dickey also said individual pieces of bread and individual cups are used for Communion, helping to cut down on the chances of passing a virus from one person to another.
Rich Creehan, communications director for the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh, said Thursday that there's no policy in place, and the church is just asking priests and parishioners to use some common sense.
Creehan spoke of some of the same steps advised by Zubik, including staying home if not feeling well and skipping drinking wine if you're not comfortable with it.
While some priests argue that the alcohol in the wine can kill germs, Creehan said there's debate whether there's a higher risk of viral transmission if a person's fingers touch the wine when they dip bread in it.
After the swine flu pandemic arose in May, Creehan said, the Rev. Lou Hays, rector of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Mount Lebanon, said anyone who would handle Communion, including priests and laymen, has to use hand sanitizer before handling the offerings.
"It's pretty much up to the individual churches what they want to do," Creehan said.
And like area churches, local businesses are also trying to deal with keeping the flu virus in check.
For the Target department store in Center Township, manager Elisa P. (managers aren't allowed to give their full last names) said hand sanitizers are placed at various locations in the store for employees, including at cash registers, time clocks and the service desk.
Disinfecting wipes are also available for staff to use, Elisa said, and they soon will probably be available for customers to wipe down shopping carts.
At the Giggles and Smiles children's store at The Mall at Robinson in Robinson Township, there's a sign telling people that children must have their hands sanitized before entering a play area, and their hands are cleaned again when they leave, according to manager Jannell Clements.
Clements said that at the end of the day, all play equipment is sanitized with bleach and other chemicals to kill off any germs.
In a letter to ministers in the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, Bishop David A. Zubik offered some hygiene tips for ministers of Communion, clergy and laity:
• Wash hands with an alcohol-based anti-bacterial solution and dry with a clean towel. At the sign of peace, consider using a gesture that does not involve shaking hands.
• When folding hands, don't raise them to touch your face.
• Do not wipe your mouth with the purificator (a piece of linen used during Mass).
• Never use the purificator as a handkerchief.
• In distributing the sacred host, carefully avoid direct contact between your fingers and the hand or tongue of the communicant.
• In Communion from the chalice, be sure to wipe the inside and outside of the rim after each communicant. Then turn the cup a bit for the next communicant. Also, remember to keep shifting the purificator so that you are not wiping with the same part of the cloth over and over again.
• After the ritual cleaning of the chalices, they should be carefully cleaned with anti-bacterial soap and warm water, then dried with clean towels.
