- Kaigama frowns on arguments against re-opening of worship centres
Pope Francis on Sunday said people should not let down their guard and assume that they are safe from the novel coronavirus now that infection levels are dropping in many Western countries.
He gave the admonition during his sermon at the Vatican on Sunday.
“You can’t declare your victory too early,” he said during his weekly prayers at St Peter’s Square. “Keep on being careful!”
That means continuing to follow the rules set by local health authorities.
There have been several renewed outbreaks around the world – though not necessarily at Catholic churches – after people returned to in-person services when it seemed that the virus had died down in their region.
Francis said he is pleased that Italy seems to have the worst phase of the virus well behind it. But, without naming specific countries, he said “there are other places where infections are still spreading rapidly.”
“Just last Friday, there was one country where one person was dying a minute. Terrible!” he said, without naming it. He said that he was keeping those infected in his thoughts.
St Peter’s Cathedral and Square were roped off in March for health reasons, though both have now reopened, albeit only to limited numbers of simultaneous visitors.
Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Ignatius Kaigama, has frowned on arguments against the re-opening of worship centres in the country.
Kaigama also said the view that religion was a non-essential service ignored the fact that a highly religious nation such as Nigeria relied on religious peace and harmony for its social integration, economic and political progress.
The immediate past President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) also picked holes in the murder of George Floyd, an African-American in Minnesota, Minneapolis, United States, saying that the killing was inhumane.
Delivering the homily to mark the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity at the Holy Cross Catholic Church, Gwarimpa, Abuja, Kaigama said: “For some months now, we have not been able to gather in this sort of liturgical assembly to praise, glorify and worship God. This has been on account of the deadly coronavirus. The threat of the virus has not gone, but we are determined to learn to live with it by going on with our daily routines. We must however observe those strict measures that will protect us from infection.
“Our civil authorities realize that in addition to the medical and social distancing precautions, the spiritual response to this disease is a very powerful part of the strategies to defeat it.
“Arguments by some officials that worship places are the breathing grounds for the virus downplay the animated effort by the COVID-19 Presidential Task Force (PTF) and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) in promoting social distancing and good personal hygiene which are the ways to keep us safe from the virus,” Kaigama said.
Kaigama further said the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja’s guidelines and protocols for the resumption of public liturgical celebrations showed how seriously the matter of providing safe, healthy and conducive atmosphere for worship had been taken.
“I believe that many of the public places like markets and shops where people are allowed to frequent do not provide the disciplined control and the same healthy environment that our worship centres offer. The health of worshippers is very important to us. The view that religion is a non-essential service ignores the fact that a highly religious nation such as Nigeria relies on religious peace and harmony for its social integration, economic and political progress. To argue that prayers can be said at home and not necessarily in worship places is to betray ignorance of the potency and efficacy of communal prayers.
“I commend the FCT Minister who in dialogue with the Christian, Muslim and Traditional leaders, following the guidelines supplied by the Federal Government, worked out the modality for the reopening of Churches and Mosques in the FCT,” Kaigama also said.
Daily Sun