Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte on Monday thanked the Dioceses of Cubao and Novaliches for strictly imposing city health protocols and promoting virtual processions and masses this Lenten season.
She cited the Diocese of Cubao and Novaliches for taking the lead in adhering to the city’s health guidelines to help prevent the transmission of COVID-19.
Bishop Most Rev. Fr. Honesto Ongtioco of Cubao and Bishop Most Rev. Fr. Roberto Gaa have agreed to temporarily suspend physical masses after Belmonte presented data from OCTA research showing the surge of covid cases on Saturday.
Both dioceses had banned physical masses even before the Inter-agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases issued the new guidelines.
Apart from masses, the church also restricted other religious activities between March 22 and April 4, 2021.
“We are grateful to our prelates for doing these huge initiatives to help the government in this battle. Since the start of the pandemic, the church has been closely working with us already,” Belmonte said.
The parishes would stream their virtual holy masses and other activities on their respective Facebook pages.
“We have to limit our movements to at least control the surge of new COVID cases that we are experiencing right now. However, we must also see to it that our residents’ religious activities and traditions won’t be affected,” Belmonte said.
In an advisory, Gaa called on their parishes to cut down their workforce.
“As you may know, almost half of the new cases daily come from households and workplaces. Given this fact, it would appear that the only way for us to control the further upsurge of Covid cases is to restrict the movements of people, including those movements by the same people from their workplaces and their homes into and out of our churches,” he said in a letter to parishioners.
Ongtioco assured their devotees that the church would exert every effort to make sure they could still celebrate holy week safely.
“Your bishop, parish priests, religious leaders, relevant ministries will exert all possible efforts to find the best and most fruitful ways for the faithful to celebrate Holy Week on safe, online platforms,” he said in a statement.
The city government and the Dioceses of Novaliches and Cubao agreed to prohibit lenten practices, such as penitentia or traditional penance involving self-flagellation, crucifixion or self-infliction of pain, pabasa or reading of the passion of Christ, senakulo or reenactment of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion, and the conduct of visita iglesia or Stations of the Cross to avoid mass gatherings.
