NATORE (UCAN): The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Bangladesh (CBCB), suspended live broadcasting of Sunday Masses on Facebook according to a notice posted on October 25 on the Facebook page of Weekly Pratibeshi, a national Catholic magazine. The move triggered a mixed reactions.
The CBCB began broadcasting Masses online in late March through Facebook Live, just a few days before Bangladesh’s government enforced a nationwide shutdown to tackle the Covid-19 coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic.
The government lifted the shutdown and started easing travel restrictions from May 31 on condition that health guidelines including use of masks, sanitisers and physical distancing, be followed.
Anthony Joseph Costa, a development worker based in a Rohingya refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar, was upset over the decision to suspend online Masses.
“There is no church nearby, so in groups we have been attending online Sunday Masses for months regularly, but we couldn’t attend last Sunday. Online Mass gave us hope but it is no more. The authority should think about revising the decision,” Costa, who comes from Pabna district, said.
Sumon Sarder, a development worker based in Kurigram district, expressed similar sentiments saying, “I have been living here with my five-member family and there is no church in the area. For the past seven months, we have been happy to attend online Sunday Masses. I appeal to the CBCB to reconsider the decision.” He noted that he goes to his village home in Gopalganj district and attends Mass in a church only on Christmas and Easter vacations.
Some supported the decision.
“I thank the Church authority for realising people have stopped attending Masses as they could participate online. It remains to be seen whether they start going to church now,” Sagar Sonjib Corraya from Dhaka commented on Facebook.
Father Augustine Bulbul Rebeiro, secretary of the CBCB’s Commission for Social Communications, said the decision to suspend broadcasts of Masses was taken in accordance with instructions from the Vatican and the current situation of the country.
“From Vatican news, we came to know around a month ago that Pope Francis directed churches to hold the Eucharist publicly. Moreover, the country has eased restrictions on public gatherings on condition of following health guidelines. However, it does not mean online Masses are stopped forever. They might be introduced again depending on the situation of the country or if the Covid-19 situation gets worse,” Father Rebeiro explained.
“The CBCB has yet to discuss having an online Eucharist regularly as many countries do it for persons with special needs and sickness,” Father Rebeiro added.
Live broadcasts of Masses might be considered for special occasions, but the Church emphasises Masses with a public presence as they are “a celebration, not a programme,” he noted.
Health experts have warned of a second wave of Covid-19 infedtions during the winter. On October 25, the government announced a “no mask, no service” policy, which means people not wearing masks won’t get services in state-run organisations.
Bangladesh has recorded 399,000 cases of Covid-19 and 5,803 deaths, according to government data.
