Fr Jeremy Palman, the parish priest of Holy Family Parish, Te Atatu, Auckland, labels compliance as discriminatory saying he will not refuse anyone's presence at any Mass on the basis of their vaccination status.

Citing skin colour, race, ethnicity, religion, genetics and disability as examples, Palman says that throughout history, too many times the Church has found "good reasons" to exclude people on the basis of "some natural bodily condition".

"Given that the Vaccine Certificate System requires monitoring for Mass attendance and discrimination against the unvaccinated, Holy Family will not be segregating Masses.

"And we will not be refusing anyone's presence at any Mass on the basis of their vaccination status", Palman says, writing in The Daily Examiner and on his parish website (last accessed 11:50, 29 November 2021).

However, in charity, he is offering special consideration to the vaccinated to sit in the Crying Room and the Choir Loft.

The vaccine status of people accessing either place will not be checked.

Both places will be administered "on trust".

Palman says that people's vaccination status is part of their private medical information and his parish will not be ascertaining it for the purposes of Mass attendance.

"We will not be a pawn for the State... and we will not be asking some parishioners to act as vaccine-policemen towards other parishioners.

"Every Mass is a public liturgy, and any Catholic has the right to attend.

"All Masses will be "open" Masses at Holy Family parish. We are all in this together. Let us not be divided nor allow others to divide us along the lines of a medical status", writes Palman.

Later in the article Palman says the parish will provide a booking system for Mass, have areas in the Church roped off, keep a 1m distance and celebrate 11 Masses throughout the week allowing, in total around 300 people to attend Mass at some point during the week and respect the number-restrictions of the traffic light system!

"The Sunday Mass obligation remains suspended, therefore, in these strange times, given the limitations, especially at traffic Light RED, we all have to accept that we may not be able to go to Mass every day, nor every week, nor every Sunday.

"These are trying times indeed as we all know well," writes Palman.

In a similar move, Sunday, Wanganui parish priest, Fr Vaughan Leslie told parishioners that Parish Pastoral Advisory Team supports the "Trust" model of entry into parish Masses and gatherings.

"When you enter the church you are declaring you are vaccinated, but this will not be checked at the door.

"In light of this, people are asked to attend those events which their vaccination status allows them to, respecting the choices everyone has made."

The parish is offering two types of Mass, a "Vaccine Pass Mass" operated on the "Trust" model and an "Open Mass" with much fewer numbers and physical distancing. Both events will respect Government number restrictions.

While the parish requests masks are to be worn at all gatherings, it is also looking to reintroduce some singing and music!

The Parish Pastoral Advisory team comprises Leslie (Chair), Mr Justin Harper, Mr Kieran Udy, Mrs Marianne Vine, Mr Michael Coleman, Mrs Joan O'Neill-Fong and ​Mrs Ruth Ockey.

The diocese of Palmerston North has advised Leslie not to proceed with the parish plans and that he will be liable for any Government fine.

On November 23, all the New Zealand Catholic bishops, acting together, published a pastoral letter, "Living, Caring, Worshipping and Ministering in a Covid-19 World".

The pastoral letter, in line with the Government's Traffic Light System, set out a range of responses to the current circumstances including providing Masses for fully vaccinated and non-fully vaccinated.

Sources

• The Daily Examiner
• CathNews
• Whanganui Catholic Parish

Fr Jeremy Palman was ordained by Bishop Patrick Dunn at St Patricks' Cathedral on August 9, and the new priest offered a thanksgiving Mass in the ordinary form at Te Atatu the next day.

On August 12, two days later, Fr Palman celebrated his "first traditional Latin Mass" at Holy Family Parish, Te Atatu.

This is believed to have been a "High Mass" of the extraordinary form (EF).

Some 500 people were present, said Fr Peter Janssen, SM, who was a "priest in choir" at the liturgy.

"It was beautifully sung. The music was just right, the music serving the liturgy," he said.

Young New Zealand priests had significant parts, with Fr Gerard Boyce of Hamilton being sub-deacon and Fr Nicholas Dillon (on loan from Dunedin diocese and ministering in Melbourne) being the deacon and homilist.

Some New Zealand seminarians were acolyte, torchbearer and thurifer at the liturgy.

Fr Janssen, who lectures seminarians and others at Good Shepherd College in Auckland, said there is interest among his students in the extraordinary form liturgy.

Fr Janssen celebrated an EF Mass at Good Shepherd, as part of a liturgy class, a couple of years ago.

This followed an EF Mass celebrated at the theologate by Fr John Rizzo, FSSP, in 2009.

Under Pope Benedict XVI's 2007 motu proprio Summorum Pontificum, priests can celebrate extraordinary form Masses without a congregation, according to the 1962 Missal, without permission from their bishop or Rome, except during the Easter Triduum.

Such Masses may "be attended also by members of the lay faithful who spontaneously request to do so, with respect for the requirements of law".

Fr Janssen said the community of people in Auckland with devotion to the extraordinary form Mass is not large in percentage terms.

"But in terms of the intensity with which it is experienced and felt, it is significant," he said.

These people wish to be in "unambiguous communion" with the Church, he said.

Fr Janssen celebrates EF Masses at Mt St Mary's in Titirangi on Saturday nights, Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation. Some other priests help him when he can't be there.

Fr Palman will be assistant priest at Papakura in south Auckland.

According to the seminary website, he is an Aucklander who was born in Twizel and spent some time in religious life in the 1990s.

Auckland diocese did not want to comment for this article.

Sources

• Summorum Pontificum
• Fr Peter Janssen, SM
• Fr Palman's First Traditional Latin Mass booklet
• Holy Family Parish Te Atatu
• Holy Cross Seminary
• Papakura Catholic
• St Patrick's Cathedral Facebook
• Catholic News Agency
• Image: Supplied