Parishioner at San Antonio church tested positive for COVID-19 after attending Mass, reverend says

A parishioner at Our Lady of The Atonement Catholic Church tested positive for COVID-19, according to a letter to the congregation from Rev. Mark Lewis.

The individual, who is now self-quarantined, had attended Mass on Sat., March 14 at 10 a.m. and on Sun., March 15 at 11 a.m.

The person’s symptoms “seem to indicate the exposure was recent,” Lewis wrote on Thursday.

Lewis, the pastor at the Northwest Side church, said he was informed Thursday afternoon that a parent of a student at The Atonement Academy had tested positive for the virus. The Academy is a private, K-12 school attached to the church.

Lewis said he confirmed the person was also a parishioner.

“I am informing you of this so that if you begin to feel ill, you should go to your doctor,” he wrote.

READ ALSO: Coronavirus prompts many San Antonio churches to cancel services

Our Lady of The Atonement is part of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, not the Archdiocese of San Antonio.

The Archdiocese, along with a number of other large churches in the area, canceled church services on March 13 after the city declared a public health emergency.

The declaration prohibited gatherings of more than 500 people and city officials strongly urged that any events drawing more than 250 people be canceled.

Our Lady of The Atonement announced Wednesday that all public services were suspended.

Reached by phone Friday, Lewis declined to comment.

A second San Antonio parishioner has also tested positive for COVID-19.

According to a letter sent home to parents at St. Luke Catholic School, a part-time parish staff member recently tested positive for the virus.

The church, school, school office and parish office are closed until further notice.