Easter celebration concerns during the pandemic

NEW YORK - Health experts are worried about people gathering to celebrate Easter this weekend, and are advising to continue to take safety precautions as more contagious variants of the coronavirus continue to spread.

"I know we all want to celebrate with our families and with our loved ones, we all want to be united again, and we will be soon, but our unity in the fight against COVID is the most important thing right now," said NYC Health Commissioner Dr. David Chokshi. "This is particularly important to protect older adults and other people who may be more vulnerable."

Pastor Monsignor Don Dwyer of Resurrection Church in Rye, New York  is encouraging the faithful to come back to church: "Come home to mass this Easter...it’s safe."

"The church is cleaned every day. Everybody sanitizes their hands before they come to church. They wear masks" said Dwyer.

Half the cathedral's capacity, which is about 400 parishioners, are allowed inside the church during each mass. Tickets to all five Easter masses are sold out. 

"This is the last time we have to go through this, because we will beat COVID once and for all during 2021, and then, in 2022, all of our gatherings can go back to what they were, and I can't wait for that," said Mayor Bill de Blasio.  "I know you all feel the same way, but, this year, let's focus on safety, because we want everyone who's with us this year to still be with us next year.""