By Our Reporter
In a move meant to compliment the government’s efforts to
contain the spread of COVID-19, Tanzania Episcopal Council (TEC) has provided a
special guideline to its worshipers, which includes skipping the traditional
kissing of the Holly Cross during this year’s Good Friday service.
The Council also said that worshippers will be required to receive the Holy
Eucharist with their hands only, and where a Mass involves more than one
Priest, they will be required to dip it in the Grail instead of the traditional
procedure of drinking from it.
These new instructions were announced by TEC President, His Eminence Archbishop
Gervas Nyaisonga, during a special Mass to consecrate the new Bishop of the
Catholic Diocese of Moshi, His Eminence Ludovick Minde held at Christ the King
Cathedral grounds here on Thursday.
“Through this guideline, the Church enters the fight …PM acts tough on
fake news “cooks” Council has announced two days of special prayers
to beseech God to protect our country from the ravages of COVID-19, and those
who have been infected to get quick recovery, and at the same time grant
specialists the ability to find the right prevention and cure of the
pandemic,” he said.
He further stated that the new guidelines intend to provide education to worshipers
so that they can comply with procedures meant to prevent the spread of the
disease as directed by the Government.
Bishop Nyaisonga added that the directive also stipulates that during this
year’s Good Friday service, believers will not be allowed to kiss the Holy
Cross during the traditional Good Friday session, and instead they will only
bow down in respect to the Holy Cross.
He also called on all priests and other church leaders to adhere to the
provided guidelines and instructions while at the same time make sure that
worshipers adhere to them to avoid the disease.
On his part, the Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Arusha, His Eminence
Isaac Amani urged all Catholic faithful and Tanzanians at large not to make fun
of the deadly disease, especially through social media.
“There are those who publish on social networks that the Coronavirus
cannot infect a black person, and that Africans are safe from it. That is not
true, the reality is that the viruses affect human beings, and Africans are
human beings, therefore we as Africans are also in danger. This disease is not
a comedy, the reports you see and hear in the media are real, people are dying,
and there are many patients receiving treatment worldwide, including in Africa,
let us follow and comply with the procedures which are provided to help us from
contracting the disease,” the cleric said.
His Eminence Archbishop of Arusha Catholic Diocese, Rt. Rev Isaac Amani, who is
the immediate predecessor of Bishop Minde and who headed the Catholic Diocese
of Moshi for 10 years before he was transferred to the Catholic Archdiocese of
Arusha, urged the Catholic Diocese of Moshi faithful to give Bishop Minde their
full cooperation in his new mission in the Diocese.
Kilimanjaro Regional Commissioner, Ms. Anna Mghwira, who represented President
John Magufuli during the ceremony, congratulated TEC on its willingness to join
the government in the fight against Coronavirus in the country.
“We believe, just like all other calamities which came and went this too
will pass, but as long as it is here, we should keep praying to the Almighty
God to save us from this pandemic. I would like to congratulate you, Bishop
Minde, who is taking over the leadership of the Catholic Diocese of Moshi in
the face of the Coronavirus crisis, and urge you to join the regional
government in tackling it,” she said.
In his message, Bishop Minde thanked God for allowing the ceremony to take
place despite the ongoing threat of COVID-19, a disease caused by coronavirus.
“I thought these celebrations will be postponed due to the current crisis,
but I thank the government for giving us the permission to continue with this
event, after it was satisfied with the procedures and precautions taken,”
he said.
During the Consecration Mass, several procedures had to be skipped or
completely left out, including taking a slight bow to the new Bishop instead of
shaking hands.
The tradition of shaking hands as a sign of peace among the congregation was
also skipped, including the traditional Blessing of the Priests in attendance
where the new Bishop was supposed to lay his hands on their heads, and instead
they came before him and bowed as a sign of respect to him while the Bishop
blessed them by bowing.
Currently, there are 287,397 Coronavirus cases reported worldwide, with 11, 897
deaths and 93, 617 recovered cases.
