CHURCHES in Zimbabwe have, in an unprecedented development, this year cancelled their traditional Easter retreats with most religious organisations resorting to live streaming their services during the 21-day lockdown.
The cancellation of Easter church meetings follows a directive by President Mnangagwa banning all gatherings of more than 50 people as a precautionary measure to curb the spread of Covid-19 in the country.
During the lockdown period, all citizens are required to stay at home, except when seeking health services, buying food, medicines and other essentials as well as to offer critical services.
In separate interviews yesterday, church leaders said the cancellation of public services during the Easter holiday, which starts today, is in compliance with lockdown regulations to combat the spread of the deadly global pandemic, which has so far claimed about 90 000 lives with more than 1,5 million people infected globally.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Zimbabwe (ELCZ) leader for the Western Diocese, Bishop Michael Dube said they have joined other churches worldwide in calling off this year’s Easter meetings due to Covid-19.
“We have a challenge as you know that since the advent of Christianity, this year is a year in which the whole world will fail to conduct Easter during which people would traditionally gather in one geographical space.
We have resorted to exploring other avenues such as utilising social media to spread the Word of God, although it will benefit mostly urbanites who have access to modern communication tools unlike those in the rural areas,” he said.
Bishop Dube said they are also encouraging their followers to open WhatsApp groups for the purposes of sharing sermons, scriptures and songs during the Easter holiday.
“Some of our congregants have created WhatsApp groups for our members and I believe, it is quite an effective way of spreading the message of salvation as it reaches a wider audience. We have already come up with Easter programmes and there are people who will be coordinating and people are already geared for that,” he said.-State media
