Gov. Tim Walz ended pandemic-related social distancing restrictions and group size limits at places of worship May 28. But on June 6, Annunciation in Minneapolis began offering one Mass each weekend with COVID-19-related restrictions still in place.

The church is sanitized before 8 a.m. Mass on Sunday, and everyone attending that Mass is required to wear a face mask. Families are asked to maintain 6 feet of space from other families.

Communal singing is fine at other Sunday Masses, but it won’t happen at 8 a.m. To minimize parishioners’ contact with others, the priest brings the Eucharist to the congregation, instead of those attending Mass walking past others to receive Communion.

Annunciation’s pastor, Father William Deziel, had the idea for the special Mass, said Jimmy Dunn, the parish’s director of outreach and community life.

Once the governor lifted restrictions, “we were thinking that there’s going to be some people that are going to adapt to this slower,” Dunn said. “So, what can we do to accommodate them and those not ready for a large gathering? So, our pastor got the idea and said, ‘Let’s just add a Mass and we’ll continue all the protocols.’”

Dunn said the special Mass is a way to encourage people to return to in-person worship if they have not been back to church since the pandemic began, or to minister to those who might be intimidated by a full-blown gathering without masks. Caregivers or people with particular health concerns also might want to maintain strict COVID protocols, he said.

Dunn said the added Mass will also help people meet the Sunday Mass obligation when the dispensation granted by Archbishop Bernard Hebda, which began in March 2020, ends July 1. However, people who are especially vulnerable to the disease are among those excused from attending Mass even after the Sunday obligation is reinstated, according to a June 3 statement from Minnesota’s Catholic bishops.

About 25 to 35 people have been attending the Mass, Dunn said. “They’re highly motivated to come to a special Mass,” he said. “And what we’ve seen is that some of the parishioners that have been coming to the other Masses have moved to the 8 a.m. Mass because it’s either their choice, or their medical history is one where they feel safer at that Mass. And there are some people that we haven’t seen for 15, 16 months that are dipping their toe in and starting again.”

The special 8 a.m. Sunday Mass is expected to continue through the summer, Dunn said.