SHILLONG: For the first time, churches were empty on Sunday and the faithful chose to remain indoors to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
For the Christians, this is the time to prepare for Good Friday and Easter but they faithfully adhered to the direction of the government — both the Centre and the state.
The Christians of all denominations, including the Presbyterians and Catholics followed the orders of civil administration.
A senior priest of the Shillong Archdiocese said on Sunday that for the 6.30 am Mass, there were a few faithful but later, no one attended the church service.
To prevent large gathering in the churches, the priests used YouTube while the faithful remained indoors and followed the Mass and prayers on the visual platform.
“We live-streamed the Mass so that the faithful sitting in their homes can witness the service and pray”, the priest added.
An individual, who wished to identify himself only as Bobby, rode up to the gate of the Cathedral of Mary Help of Christians, parked his bike and prayed alone, striking a balance between prayer and instructions of the government.
“I came here to pray alone because this is what needs to be done. Social distancing is a must and we should follow the advisories strictly,” said Bobby.
The churches will follow the guidelines of the government till March 31 and wait for further instructions.
The general secretary of the Central Puja Committee, JL Das, said all the temples in the state, including the famous Nartiang temple, have been closed till March 31 as per the advisory of the government.
He also said the arrangements of washbasins and sanitisers have also been made in all the temples, including Matri Sangha, which is one of the most prominent temples in the city that attracts large crowds.
A functionary of a prominent mosque in the city said that they are frequently announcing that mosques should not be crowded during prayers besides other measures are also being taken. The East Khasi Hills deputy commissioner had last week called a meeting of all the religious organisations with an appeal to make sure that precautions are taken in all the religious places across the district.
Our Tura correspondent adds: In Garo Hills, religious gatherings as well as Sunday worship in churches, including the Tura Baptist Church, were earlier suspended for a few weeks in view of the outbreak of virus. The service on Sunday was conducted by a few leaders of the Church without the involvement of the faithful.
The faithful were instead asked to participate in the service from the safety of their own homes. A live feed of the Tura Baptist Church English worship service was also posted on Facebook for residents to participate from their homes. The conduct of Sunday schools has also been stopped for the time being.
