Over the weekend, Our Lady of Angels Church in Sherman Heights had to adjust its Mass schedule and location.
“Around noon, we noticed that it was way too hot to be inside,” Father Bernardo Lara said. “And that's when it hit me: for Sunday mass, it's going to be overcrowded. There's no way we're going to be able to be inside.”
Father Lara said he cut down the usual almost hourlong Mass to 30 minutes due to the heat, requiring him to keep things short or even remove some parts.
“However, I do also think that from time to time or in case of emergencies like this, I don't think people mind,” Father Lara said. “I think they actually appreciated it just because it's a rare thing. It's not an every week thing.”
Father Lara said Pope Francis had made warnings in the past about how the heat would get worse, especially for particular communities.
“Pope Francis always said that climate change was going to affect people in one way or another, particularly the poor communities, then those that are the lowest income.”
The church does have fans inside the historic church, but Father Lara said they are noisy, and at a certain point, they only blow hot air.
“We just celebrated 120 years with all of the community and the church building. For that reason, it's lacking in many benefits like insulation, AC,” Father Lara said. “So, we are actually planning ahead for the next year because I think this is going to get worse. We're not going to go back.”
Father Lara said overall attendance has not been affected.
