The coronavirus scare extended its disruption into the spiritual lives of North Jersey's 1.7 million Catholics, as the Newark Archdiocese said it would suspend the celebration of Mass this weekend and Paterson's diocese said it would make attendance optional.

Both also said they would temporarily close dozens of elementary and high schools across the region.

"Because of the risk of spreading the coronavirus, the faithful of the Diocese of Paterson may legitimately choose not to attend Sunday Mass until further notice," Bishop Arthur Seratelli said in a letter Friday to his 400,000 Catholic followers. "Those who choose to attend are urged to use caution and prudence through appropriate social distancing."

And the Archdiocese of Newark on Friday said that it will livestream Mass Sunday at 12 p.m. The Mass, in English and Spanish, will be celebrated by Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin. To watch the livestream, visit the Archdiocese of Newark’s YouTube channel at youtube.com/nwkarchdiocese.

The announcements came as synagogues across Bergen County and more than two dozen mosques around the state also announced they were suspending services to cut off routes for the virus to spread.

On Friday, the Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey said it would suspend public worship services and all non-essential gatherings in its 140 congregations.

State health officials on Friday said New Jersey now has 50 presumed cases of the virus, just a week after the first case was announced. Gov. Phil Murphy has urged that large public gatherings in the state be canceled for now.

It's only a matter of time before all of the state's public schools will be asked to close their doors and switch to online instruction, Murphy said.

Religious schools are already moving in that direction. The Paterson diocese said all of its schools will be closed for a two-week period starting on Monday.

The Newark Archdiocese, meanwhile, said it will reassess the situation next week. All CYO basketball games scheduled throughout the archdiocese were also canceled, it said in a statement Thursday.

The Newark Archdiocese serves Catholics in Bergen, Essex, Hudson and Union counties and operates 212 parishes. It oversees 67 elementary and 25 high schools with a combined 25,000 students.

The Paterson diocese has 109 parishes in Passaic, Morris and Sussex counties and 39 schools.

Newark's Archdiocese said in a statement issued late Thursday night that Tobin has "dispensed the faithful of the Archdiocese from the obligation to attend Sunday Mass until further notice. Additionally, he has suspended the public celebration of Mass for Saturday evening, March 14, and Sunday, March 15, 2020, after evaluating recommendations of state and health officials. This decision will be reviewed daily, and any new determination will be announced next week."

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"The celebration of daily Mass will continue," the statement continued. "Churches of the Archdiocese will remain open and the faithful are encouraged to pray while maintaining a prudent distance from each other."

In addition, scheduled sacramental celebrations such as weddings, baptisms, or funerals will be permitted, but attendance should be limited to immediate family members only, the statement said. The sacraments of the Anointing of the Sick and Reconciliation will remain available, as needed.

“Our dedicated teams continue to actively monitor the unfolding pandemic and will continue to meet daily to assess changing circumstances in order to protect the faithful and support its parishes and schools,” said Cardinal Tobin. “We encourage pastors to think about necessary activities and to postpone non-essential gatherings, keeping in mind the common good.”

Bergen County has more presumed cases of coronavirus, or COVID-19, more than any other county, and the risk to residents was described as "moderate" by state health officials.

The Newark Archdiocese's school closures would only affect high schools directly run by the archdiocese, and not other Catholic religious orders. In Bergen County, those schools include Paramus Catholic, St. Mary High School in Rutherford, St. Joseph Regional in Montvale, and Immaculate Heart in Washington Township. In Essex County, they include Immaculate Conception in Montclair and Seton Hall Prep in West Orange.

"The private high schools run by religious orders generally make their own decisions," said Maria Margiotta, an archdiocesan spokeswoman.

In Bergen County, those schools would include Bergen Catholic, run by the Christian Brothers, and Don Bosco Prep, run by the Salesians. In Essex, they would include Mount St. Dominic Academy in Caldwell and Lacordaire Academy in Upper Montclair, both founded by the Dominican order.

Don Bosco President Robert Fazio said that the school will shut down at 5 p.m. Friday and be closed for two weeks. Students will start online learning Monday using an iPad program. "Learning won't be compromised," he said. "It will be business as usual."

He said all spring sports will be suspended while Don Bosco is closed.

Immaculate Conception High School in Lodi, run by the Salesians, will also move to remote learning, beginning on Monday, for two weeks, then reevaluate the situation. All extracurricular activities, including athletics, drama and clubs, are also suspended. Midterm exams will be rescheduled.

Both Immaculate Conception and Ridgewood High said that the SAT test scheduled for Saturday has been postponed and will be rescheduled.

Bergen County Executive Jim Tedesco said Thursday night that he decided to close schools in all 75 Bergen County school districts at 3 p.m. Friday and have them transition to online learning in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

He also urged all religious and private schools in the county to take the same action as the public schools by closing and switching to online learning.

Tedesco said the move to close schools was "a paramount decision and I don't take it or make it lightly."

The county's 75 districts include 170,000 students, 16,000 teachers and hundreds of administrators.

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Jersey City in Hudson County announced that its schools will close Monday for a week to review risks and decide if the district will remain closed another week.

The "steep increase" in cases statewide — from one to 29 in a week — motivated officials "to step back and say, 'What further mitigation strategies should we undertake,' " said state Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli.

Based on her recommendation, Gov. Murphy urged announced that all gatherings of more than 250 people should be canceled, including parades, concerts and sporting events. "Social distancing works," Murphy tweeted. "This is our best chance to mitigate the chance of exposure & rapid spread of #COVID19."

The Rabbinical Council of Bergen County, which represents more than two dozen temples in the area, ordered a temporary close to all its synagogues, and also ordered kosher restaurants under the group's jurisdiction to serve only take-out or delivery meals. Funerals would be restricted to families only, among a series of other steps outlined in a letter released Thursday.

Orthodox Jewish schools in the region have already been shut down. But the letter advised families to avoid playdates or other meetings.

"This decision was not taken lightly," said Rabbi Kenneth Schiowitz, president of the council and spiritual leader of Congregation Shaare Tefilah in Teaneck. "However, synagogues, as centers for larger gatherings, must take the lead on social distancing. We have one goal: to slow the spread of the virus and to save lives."