The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston says during flu season parishioners should bow instead of shaking hands when exchanging the 'Sign of Peace', and ministers should take care not to touch the hand or tongue while distributing Holy Communion.

A set of guidelines issued by the archdiocese, on Tuesday, to combat the spread of seasonal and swine flu also calls on churches to regularly clean and disinfect holy water fonts.

And, it absolves ailing parishioners of their Sunday Mass obligation and urges them to stay home until they're better.

The Office of Worship says the best way to avoid spreading the flu is by practicing good hygiene.

The directives take effect this weekend.

The archdiocese serves about two million Catholics in 292 parishes in the Boston area.