“Plenary Indulgence is granted to the faithful affected by Coronavirus, subjected to quarantine for the disposition of the health authority in hospitals or in their own homes if, with a soul detached from any sin, they spiritually unite through the media to the celebration of the Holy Mass, the recitation of the Holy Rosary, the pious practice of the Via Crucis or other forms of devotion, or if at least they will recite the Creed, the Our Father and a pious invocation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, offering this proof in a spirit of faith in God and charity towards our brothers and sisters, with the will to fulfill the usual conditions (sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion and prayer according to the intentions of the Holy Father), as soon as it is possible for them.
Health workers, family members and those who, following the example of the Good Samaritan, exposing themselves to the risk of contagion, assist Coronavirus patients according to the words of the divine Redeemer: «Nobody has a love greater than this: giving life for their own friends »( Jn 15:13), will obtain the same gift of plenary indulgence on the same conditions.
Furthermore, this Apostolic Penitentiary willingly grants Plenary Indulgence under the same conditions on the occasion of the current world epidemic, even to those faithful who offer a visit to the Blessed Sacrament, or Eucharistic adoration, or the reading of the Holy Scriptures for at least half now, either the recitation of the Holy Rosary, or the pious exercise of the Via Crucis, or the recitation of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to implore from Almighty God the cessation of the epidemic, relief for those who are afflicted and eternal salvation of how many the Lord has called to himself.“
READ THE ENTIRE DECREE OF APOSTOLIC PENITENTIARY HERE!
What is an indulgence, you ask? The short answer (from the Catholic Encyclopedia) is that an Indulgence is: “extra-sacramental remission of the temporal punishment due, in God’s justice, to sin that has been forgiven.” The word ‘plenary‘ means full, whereas a partial indulgence is just that – partial. For a more thorough treatment on indulgences, check out the Catholic Encyclopedia at NewAdvent.org.
More on Indulgences from The Vatican.
