<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="fr" dir="ltr">Le Président n'a rien dit sur les lieux de culte, mais Mgr de Moulins Beaufort lui a écrit hier pour lui demander qu'en cas de confinement, les célébrations cultuelles demeurent. Il en va, me semble-t-il, de la liberté de culte, d'autant que les écoles restent ouvertes.</p>— Mgr Marc Aillet (@MgrMAillet) <a href="https://twitter.com/MgrMAillet/status/1321573765797584896?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 28, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
France's lockdown went into effect Oct. 30 and will last until at least Dec. 1. Under the current restrictions, people are not permitted to go 1 kilometer beyond their homes, except for essential work or medical reasons. All non-essential businesses, including restaurants, are closed, but schools will remain open.
La Croix has reported that the French Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin specified in a video conference with religious leaders Oct. 28 that churches will be allowed to remain open, however all religious ceremonies throughout the country, including public Masses, weddings, and funerals will be suspended from Nov. 2 until at least Dec. 1.
The French bishops' conference and local dioceses have not made any official announcements, except to clarify that All Saints' Day Masses will be allowed to take place.
Europe is currently experiencing a second wave of coronavirus cases which has led Italy and Spain to impose curfews and Germany to close all bars and restaurants for one month.
More than 1 million people have tested positive for COVID-19 in France, where 35,823 people have died after contracting the coronavirus, according to the John Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.
Following the Oct. 29 terrorist attack at Notre-Dame de Nice, a spokesperson for the French Bishops' Conference, Vincent Neymon, argued for the importance of France's churches to remain open for Christians.
"To close the churches would be to bend one's knee in the face of this threat which seeks to sow anxiety among our compatriots," Neymon said in a radio interview with RTL.
Courtney Mares is a Rome Correspondent for Catholic News Agency. A graduate of Harvard University, she has reported from news bureaus on three continents and was awarded the Gardner Fellowship for her work with North Korean refugees.