Photo: PA Image An archdiocese in South Korea has suspended all Masses for two weeks and cancelled the Ash Wednesday liturgy in order to stop the spread of the coronavirus at religious gatherings.
Archbishop Thaddeus Cho Hwan-kil of Daegu has banned all Church meetings until March 5 after new cases were reported from Christian congregations in parishes and religious houses in the area.
In an urgent directive, he urged Catholics to pray in homes and engage in spiritual exercises, including the reading of the Gospel, to observe the day of obligation.
The move comes just over a week after Hong Kong’s diocese suspended all Church programs until February 28.
The city is now in lockdown and on red alert for the first time since the H1N1 virus outbreak in 2009, which killed 250. At least six people have died from the coronavirus in South Korea and more than 600 have been infected. Many of the total number infected are people who attended prayer programs of a Christian sect based in the city.
Korea’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) links the infections to a 61-year-old woman, identified as ‘Patient 31’, who tested positive early last week.
The woman in question, according to the agency, had no recent record of travelling overseas but reportedly attended the Church services before and after she had symptoms of the virus.
At least 15 people who attended the prayer ceremonies with Patient 31 have tested positive for the coronavirus with more than 400 showing symptoms.
Quarantine
Hundreds are believed to have attended services with the affected woman in recent weeks at a branch of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony.
The Shincheonji Church, founded in 1984 by Lee Man-hee, advised its 9,000 members to stay home and encouraged those who had attended services to be tested and quarantine themselves.
The Church, now temporarily closed, issued a statement on February 23 claiming its followers were the “biggest victims” and that they had been subjected to “groundless criticism and hatred” since news emerged of the outbreak.
“Taking measures to temporarily shut down the Shincheonji facilities is not a suppression of religion but for the sake of the lives and safety of the residents and citizens,” said South Korean president Moon Jae-in.
At least 2,600 people from around 79,000 confirmed cases have died from the disease, which has spread to more than 26 countries worldwide, causing widespread economic and travel disruptions.
Israel and Bahrain have imposed an entry ban on South Koreans while Samsung closed down a smartphone plant after a worker tested positive for the virus.
Neighbours North Korea, meanwhile, have quarantined 380 foreigners in an attempt to stop the virus breaking out.