KUALA LUMPUR (UCAN): Young Catholics in Malaysia have been busy offering spiritual support to medical workers after the country recorded an alarming increase in the number of positive Covid-19 coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) cases.
The young people of the Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah state, on the island of Borneo, held a nighttime prayer service with Father Paul Lo, the parish priest of Sacred Heart Cathedral.
They offered prayers for health workers and for all those who have been affected by Covid-19, local media reported on October 26. The vigil, broadcast live on social media, garnered more than 10,000 views.
Two Catholic doctors shared their experiences in handling pandemic patients and encouraged everyone to follow health protocols.
In her reflection one young participant, Jennifer, wondered when the lives of young people would become normal again.
“When can we go out again? When can we go to Mass again? The coronavirus is revealing our fears: the fear of loss, death, uncertainty, insecurity. Is there still hope?” she asked.
Father Lo read a passage from the Bible in the local Bahasa Malaysia language and in Mandarin. His reflection stressed the value of hope.
“Even if we may feel powerless and discouraged by everything that is happening, we must continue to pray because it is our only weapon at the moment. We must continue to hope in Jesus,” the priest told the Fides news agency.
Malaysia reported more than 800 new Covid-19 cases on October 28, with more than 11,500 in the previous two weeks as cases began to spiral in the second wave of the pandemic.
The total number of infections in the country has reached more than 29,400. Officially, the pandemic had killed 246 people as of October 29.
As Malaysia faces its Covid-19 battle, a political crisis has cropped up. On October 25, the king rejected a proposal by embattled prime minister, Muhyiddin Yassin, to declare a state of emergency to fight the pandemic.
Muhyiddin’s plan, which involved suspending parliament, sparked national ire, with critics slamming the move as undemocratic.
The palace said in a statement that Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah believes “that there is currently no need for His Majesty to declare a state of emergency in this country or any part of Malaysia.”
A two-week lockdown announced earlier in October would be extended until November 9, minister of security, Ismail Sabri Yaakob, said.
The government has imposed curbs, including the closure of schools and religious places.
The Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur suspended public Masses on October 7 in churches within the capital and Selangor state.
The archdiocese said its crisis management task force has taken additional health measures to prevent the risk of Covid-19 transmission.
