Churches to Stay Closed for Religious Services  Until June 30 in Udupi District

Churches to Stay Closed for Religious Services  Until June 30 in Udupi District

Udupi: The Christian community of Udupi District has decided to keep the Churches closed until June 30, even though the state government has allowed the reopening of religious places from June 08, as part of the lockdown relaxations.

In a press release issued by the Bishop of Udupi and President of United Christian Forum, Udupi, Bishop Dr Gerald Lobo has stated that the Government of Karnataka has allowed the churches to open after being barred from having any communitarian religious celebrations for the past 70 days due to the COVID-19 pandemic, to resume worship and other activities from June 08, 2020. We are grateful to our State Government for this opportunity.

When the lockdown was imposed in India, the number of people infected by COVID-19 was minimal. Today the number has crossed 2,50,000. Approximately 10,000 people are getting infected daily. The situation in Karnataka is moving from bad to worse. Udupi, which, initially, was declared a ‘Green Zone’ has reached the top of the list of the infected in Karnataka with more than 6,000 patients.

Taking into consideration the present situation, even though the State Government has granted permission, considering the health and safety of our people as of paramount importance, the United Christian Forum for Human Rights, Udupi, has decided not to conduct common worship and other religious activities in the Churches of Udupi District till June 30 2020.

Nevertheless, the Churches will be open for the devotees who, with all necessary precautions, may visit for personal prayer. The Forum has decided it in a meeting held at the Bishop’s House, Udupi, on June 09, 2020, in which the heads of the Udupi Catholic Diocese, United Basel Mission Churches (UBM), Church of South India (CSI), Full Gospel Pastors’ Association and leaders of other Churches and denominations were present.

It was also unanimously decided to review the situation on June 30, 2020, to determine the future course of action. The Church leaders have appealed to everyone to show Christian Charity by taking maximum care in not infecting anyone with COVID-19 and cooperate with the Government in containing the pandemic.