Christians observe Easter Sunday at homes as church services go online

This Easter Sunday, the Christian community celebrated the occasion at home with online prayers instead of going to the churches amid the coronavirus closures.

The day is celebrated to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Traditionally, the gap between Good Friday and Easter Sunday is a busy time for the members of the community as they divide their time between prayers and preparations for Easter.

But this time round, the religious minority in Karachi has already been adopting safety measures in their religious events to prevent the COVID-19 from spreading, by shortening their prayers and in some cases and closing down places of worship, since as early as March 15.

The Christian community had started exercising prudence in its Sunday’s prayers by not shaking hands with the priest at the end of the prayer even before the coronavirus cases were reported in Pakistan. As soon as the first few COVID-10 cases surfaced in the country, they called off their Holy Communion ceremonies on Sunday.

Speaking to The News, Bishop Sadiq Daniel of the Holy Trinity Cathedral said prayers took place in his church with not more than 10 people, all of whom reside in the church’s compound. Daniel is also the bishop of Karachi Diocese, under which all the catholic churches of Sindh and Balochistan fall.

“The prayer was broadcast live on Facebook and everyone watched it online,” he said, adding that no one from outside was allowed inside the church.

“We stayed at home and celebrated,” he said and added that there weren’t any feasts or gathering this time in a bid to strictly observe social distancing. “Every year I would have lunch at my in-laws’ on the day of Easter. This year I stayed inside the church’s compound.”

Mayor’s message

Karachi Mayor Karachi Wasim Akhtar hailed the paramedical staff belonging to the Christian community who performed their duties “during these difficult times, even on Easter Sunday”. Greetings the Christian community on their festival, Akhtar praised the entire community for observing Easter in their homes due to the novel coronavirus. He asked Karachiites to pray for the country's prosperity and to get rid of coronavirus.

He also paid tribute to Christian doctors, paramedics and staffers of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation who performed their duties in the current circumstances quite efficiently. Akhtar said the KMC never discriminated with their workers as employees belonging to the Christian community had equal rights and facilities just like other employees of the department.