JULY 7TH, 2020 - the City of Toronto issued restrictions forbidding churches of ALL denominations from distributing Holy Communion to worshipers that wish to receive it. This order includes the following restrictions, but are not limited to:

• Suspending indoor singing activities and choir service.
• Suspending the sharing and distribution of the following materials and objects: books, communion objects, microphones, prayer mats, prayer shawls, water, chalices, collection plates 
• Discontinuing use of Holy Water rites

For many Christian denominations, sacraments like Holy Communion and Baptism play a vital role in ensuring Man's spiritual union with God - this is the core belief of all true Christians. Without sacraments, the services that take place in churches would be rendered pointless. Priests no longer serve a purpose when these elements are forcibly removed, and laypeople no longer have any justified reason to attend church. 

Hygienic practices like social distancing and mask wearing are completely justified during these times, and this includes houses of worship. However, the decision to require (by law) that churches suspend critical elements such as Communion and Baptism is nothing but a violation of every individual's right to freedom of religious expression.

"If you knew how much grace and blessing comes in the Divine Liturgy, you would even gather up the dust from the ground of the Temple and wash your faces with it." - St. Gabriel Urgebadze