Manila Bulletin
Prelate unfazed by Malacañang threat; insists 10% of church capacity not mass gathering
The Archdiocese of Manila will permit churches to hold Masses at 10 percent seating capacity starting Wednesday, March 24, 2021.
Archdiocese of Manila Apostolic Administrator Bishop Broderick Pabillo stated that 10 percent capacity is not a "mass gathering" and expressed no fear of Malacañang's threats.
He maintained that religious activities would follow health protocols with worshippers spread apart.
However, religious activities outside churches, such as Senakulo, Pabasa, processions, motorcades, and Visita Iglesia, remain prohibited.
This decision comes as the government prohibited religious gatherings in the NCR bubble from March 22 to April 4 due to a surge in COVID-19 cases.
Weddings, baptisms, and funerals are permitted with a maximum of 10 participants.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque had stated that Catholic churches defying the ban on religious gatherings would be ordered closed.
Bishop Pabillo also noted that the decision to open or not still depends on local parishes.
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The Archdiocese of Manila clarified that it is not defying the government's ban on religious gatherings in the NCR Plus bubble.
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Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David, also the vice president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), criticized the government's decision to ban religious gatherings while allowing gyms and spas to operate at limited capacities in NCR Plus.
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Malacañang threatened to order the closure of Catholic churches that will defy the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) directive banning religious gatherings within the NCR Plus bubble from March 22 to April 4.
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The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) has approved once-a-day religious gatherings at 10 percent venue capacity from April 1 to April 4.
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The National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP) has described the Inter-Agency Task Force's (IATF) ban on religious gatherings in the "NCR Plus" bubble as "grossly unfair" and implemented without prior consultation.
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