In what must arguably be the clearest sign yet that our government sometimes makes decisions and certain concessions as a result of nothing but societal pressure, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Tuesday evening that religious gatherings would be allowed again. Some of the stipulations were that there wouldn’t be more than 50 people at one gathering, and that congregants would all have to wear the protective face masks that have become our ‘new normal’.
We find that rather strange and disagree with it.
That is because one of the simplest rules of thumb to understand and practice with regards to how to stop the spread of the coronavirus is to practice social distancing, which is not very common in religious gatherings, generally speaking.
Not to suggest that it’s impossible to observe, but the question then becomes, for whom is it possible, and what of those who can’t afford to practice it?
A number of churches around Kwatsaduza – mostly the indigenous ones – congregate in makeshift settings such as garages, school classrooms, and in some cases, the small houses that make up the majority of the settlement, which raises the concern about how those churches will manage to achieve social distancing, should they also wish to return to their places of worship. It makes you wonder if the president – without making this sound like a personal attack on him – who was born in a similar environment, in Soweto, remembered the fact when he made the bold announcement to the nation.
And even for those who are fortunate enough to own, or afford to rent, large enough buildings for their gatherings, it still can’t be guaranteed that their meetings will be 100 percent safe, because of the simple fact that no one knows the health of those who are keen to return to these gatherings.
But, at the same time, we do not necessarily argue that worshiping is not important to the spiritual health of those who need it, but we are just arguing against the idea that people have to practice it by gathering and putting their lives, and those of others, at risk.
That activities such as contact sport, which some argue contribute to a large extent to the country’s “happiness index”, will still be banned under level 3 of the lockdown, which will come into effect on the 1st of June, but a gathering for a similar cause will be allowed, is somewhat contradictory. And we are not even talking about sport that would have thousands of fans in the stands, because as we know, the country’s football bosses, for example, have already conceded that the different competitions would have to be played behind closed doors if it were to be possible at all for them to continue.
This is over and above the fact that some of the infections in the country, whose total number is now just below 26 000, have been attributed to church gatherings.
So from that, it is clear to see that the government needs to allow for activities to only take place if they are absolutely necessary, what with the peak of the infections only expected later in the year.
But then again, it’s all up to us the churchgoers to decide for ourselves if we want to go back despite the obvious risks involved, or continue to stay at home and play it safe, until it is safe to return to convention.
* Cover image: rekordeast.co.za.
Comments