Coronavirus in Chandigarh: Prayers offered online on Good Friday as churches remain closed

Heads of various churches conducted prayer services through YouTube, Facebook Live and WhatsApp for the 20,000 members of the Christian community

Good Friday, a day of repentance and meditation on the agony of Christ on the cross, passed quietly with all the 25 churches closed and prayers offered online because of the curfew to prevent the spread of the disease.

The CNI Church in Sector 18, Chandigarh, wearing a deserted look on Good Friday. (Keshav Singh/HT)

Heads of various churches conducted prayer services through YouTube, Facebook Live and WhatsApp for the 20,000 members of the Christian community here.

Addressing the devotees through YouTube, Ignatius Mascarenhas, Bishop of Simla and Chandigarh Diocese, said, “We ask Lord Jesus Christ to stop the coronavirus pandemic which has infected nearly half a million people and disrupted countless lives. Good Friday is a time of repentance when the faithful are supposed to admit their guilt and find ways for improvement. Jesus Christ transforms the person,” he said.

Pastor of Church of North India (CNI), Sector 18, Reverend Denzal Peoples, in a Facebook Live session, said, “Good Friday is marked as the day of crucifixion of Jesus Christ on the cross for the mankind. It’s the first time in the History that the churches were closed across the Globe on the Good Friday, he said.