Passover, Easter and the start of Ramadan are all happening in April, but this year faithful must practice their religion while observing social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic.
As Britain’s communities have been driven apart by Covid-19, video apps have become an unlikely companion for religious leaders – offering a means to deliver sermons to followers retreating into their homes to abide by social distancing measures.
Rector of Liverpool and Vicar of St Nicolas Liverpool Parish church, Reverend Canon Crispin Pailing, started to think about technology early on as a tool to keep going amid the outbreak.
“It’s been an adventure for all of us, partly because there was no lead-up to it,” he explains.
“We all knew that lockdown was going to happen so we had to move everything that we know about church straight over to a different model. It was quite hectic, but we’ve adjusted.”
Zoom being a popular choice for the Parish, it was used to sing the Hosanna on Palm Sunday with close to 50 people joining.
It also allows the church members to connect daily, explains Reverend Canon Crispin Pailing.
The Jewish holiday of Passover would typically be a crowded affair as families gather for holiday meals and special prayer services.
Esther Gross hosted a call with her family, “For the Seder you tell a story so we all picked out
the story we would read. and we each took turn telling the story.”
“There’s a sense of community which is very strong because everybody is going through the same thing.”
At the end of April, Muslims across the world will observe the month of Ramadan.
During the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims across the globe and throughout the UK endure a period of daily fasting – the largest act of religious observance of its kind.
Iftars are a significant communal part of Ramadan where Muslims gather together to share food after a day of fasting.
The Ramadan Tent Project usually holds Open Iftars events – where up to 70,000 guests will come together eat a meal with fellow Muslims.
This year, virtual Iftars will be held throughout the month due to the coronavirus lockdown.
“With the virtual open Iftar people will follow Public Health guidelines and stay at home. they’d cook their own meals with the families. However, what we would encourage them to do is join us on the online and social media platforms to listen to people talk to share ideas, to check in on one another, be neighbourly,” said Amad Afzal, Head of Operations for the Ramandan Tent Project.
Get the latest headlines: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/
Telegraph.co.uk and YouTube.com/TelegraphTV are websites of The Telegraph, the UK’s best-selling quality daily newspaper providing news and analysis on UK and world events, business, sport, lifestyle and culture.
