COVID-19 restrictions are winding down and in Australia, as of Friday anyone who tests positive will no longer be required to isolate. It is one of the last COVID rules to be scrapped following two years of restrictions lead by health advice. Masks, too, seem to be being left behind. Once mandatory in public places, Read more
Auckland schools that decided to keep mask mandates during term 2 saw higher student attendance than those that dropped them. Heading into term 2, the Government made the controversial call to remove nationwide school mask mandates instead leaving it up to individual schools to make their own rules. The decision sparked disagreement from the disability Read more
While the political debate on masks may never be settled, a large new study this week further solidifies the story from the realm of science: People who wear face coverings are less likely to spread COVID-19. Cases of in-school transmission were 72% lower in districts with mandatory masking during the late summer and fall of Read more
Pope Francis’ repeated non-use of a face mask is again in focus as Four Swiss Guards test positive for COVID-19. The four are in isolation while their contacts are being traced, the Vatican said Monday. The Swiss Guards provide ceremonial guard duty during papal Masses, man the Vatican gates and help protect the 83-year-old Pope Read more
What is the proper spiritual response to the coronavirus pandemic? Although many Catholics seek to use this period as “a time of renewal,” as one priest put it, a vocal minority are approaching the pandemic with words more suited to culture warriors than to spiritual warfare. Any Catholic who has spent time on social media Read more