Churches in Nairobi today widely embraced online worship, two days after the President issued new Covid-19 containment measures.
The African Inland Church (AIC) Milimani, Nairobi Baptist Church, St. Francis Catholic Church Karen, Parklands Baptist, Deliverance Church Donholm, and Christ Is The Answer Ministries (CITAM) are among the churches that heeded the government’s call to cease physical worship, but services continued.
The churches came up with alternative ways of ensuring worship continued uninterrupted by ministering to their congregants through online platforms as directed by the Inter-Faith Council For National Response to Coronavirus Pandemic on Saturday.
President Uhuru Kenyatta directed a cessation of physical worship in Nairobi, Machakos, Kajiado, Kiambu and Nakuru which have been marked as the zone of increased infections.
The council chaired by Archbishop Anthony Muheria recommended online worship as an alternative with a maximum of 15 people on location, where services should not exceed an hour.
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Muheria reiterated that the guidelines put in place are to be applied even during the weekly worship as well as upcoming Easter and Ramadhan celebrations.
.@irck_info The Interfaith Council for National Response to Corona Virus Pandemic Press Release - 27th March 2021. #lockdown2021 #InterfaithPresser pic.twitter.com/cCDx8cIulu — Inter-Religious Council of Kenya(IRCK) (@irck_info) March 27, 2021
For areas outside the high infections zone, the council insisted on strict adherence to Covid-19 guidelines put in place by the Ministry of Health and strict compliance to the 1.5m social distancing rule.
Muheria further called for strict hygiene standards by washing hands regularly and congregants putting on their masks at all times.
Weddings and funerals were also directed to have a maximum of 30 and 50 people in attendance respectively.
The statement warned those aged above 65 to worship from home.
