Dear Fathers,
I hope that, as I write this, you are all keeping as well and safe as possible in these extraordinary and unsettling times.
I write with an important message. The General Secretary of the Bishops’ Conference has, this morning, sent a note to all the Bishops, which I have copied at the end of this e-mail. It makes it clear that all churches MUST be closed, and remain so. The Cardinal asks your urgent co-operation with this most important instruction.
With all best wishes and prayers,
Fr Alexander Master
Private Secretary to Cardinal Vincent Nichols
Archbishop’s House | Ambrosden Avenue | London | SW1P 1QJ
Closure of Churches
Following the instruction that the Prime Minister gave last night, there has been an inconsistent message from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government regarding the opening of churches. In the published guidelines, it states that “places of worship should remain open for solitary prayer.”
The instruction is very clear on the occasions when someone can leave home:
- Shopping for basic necessities, for example food and medicine, which must be as infrequent as possible.
- One form of exercise a day, for example a run, walk, or cycle – alone or with members of your household.
- Any medical need, or to provide care or to help a vulnerable person.
- Travelling to and from work, but only where this absolutely cannot be done from home.
None of these four specific reasons for leaving home concur with the visiting of a church for solitary prayer. In addition, keeping churches open could undermine the desire of the Government for people to remain at home, the very fact of them being open may draw people out of their homes, many of which would be the most vulnerable to infection.
Prof. Jim McManus has spoken with a senior civil servant and it was quite clear they just had not thought through the issues of infection and security of churches and when he made these points clear, they were appalled and agreed they had made a mistake.
Keeping churches open sends an utterly inconsistent message and therefore they must be closed for the benefit of others and stopping infection.
