The latest report by experts that there was no spike in COVID-19 case in Metro Manila after the holidays and the Black Nazarene feast shows that church services are not super-spreaders, a Catholic bishop said.
Bishop Broderick Pabillo, administrator of the Manila archdiocese, said this also means that health protocols in churches are strictly implemented.
“Churches are not (coronavirus) spreaders because the management of services is good,” Bishop Pabillo said.
Latest OCTA Research report showed the holidays did not result in a surge of COVID-19 cases, refuting previous fears that Christmas church services and the “Traslacion” could be super-spreader events for the virus.
Bishop Pabillo said that Masses and other religious services are nothing to be afraid of when proper mitigations are followed.
He said the latest report may also be used as a basis for government authorities to increase seating capacity in places of worship.
“If they claim that they are science-based, they should consider it,” the bishop added.
The seating capacity for churches in areas with the general community quarantine remained at 30 percent, while those in the modified GCQ are allowed at 50 percent attendance.
The Diocese of Tarlac in the north of Manila said the report also showed that the observance of safety measures in churches is effective in containing the spread of coronavirus.
“What is important is to carry on in solidifying our efforts to end the pandemic through unity and self-discipline,” it said.
