Colombians defy coronavirus to mark Easter

BOGOTA, Colombia

Colombia has witnessed a most unusual Holy Week in a country where about 75% of the population is Catholic and where attendance at religious services is one of the main activities this time of year.

In a stark departure from past years, when hordes of people gathered in a demonstration of their religious fervor, the scene today is deserted. Due to the coronavirus outbreak, religious communities in Colombia have closed churches and temples, banned congregations and processions and replaced crowded masses with live-streamed services and worship at home.

Cardinal Rubén Salazar Gómez, the highest authority of the Catholic Church in Colombia, recently told El Tiempo newspaper he is concerned about the devastating effects of COVID-19, the fragility of the country’s health system and the economic crisis “which is affecting, above all, the poorest people.”

But Cardinal Salazar noted he is optimistic, saying if Colombians have been able to overcome so much violence and injustice for so many years, “we will overcome the crisis of the coronavirus.”

"Let it be clear that something like a pandemic will never be God's plan," he said, strongly rejecting an attempt by some Evangelical churches to attribute the spread of the virus to a punishment from God.

Despite the nearly month-long lockdown Colombia has experienced due to the health emergency, the Catholic Church has invited people to worship in solidarity with one another, even if it is not possible to physically gather. They have offered a series of online resources to allow people to perform eucharistic celebrations from home, including designating family members to lead the rituals and explain them.

Many Evangelical churches, which are followed by about 20% of Colombians, have been using technology to preach and praise. But some leaders of these churches said they have been facing cash problems as the lockdowns stretched into Holy Week.

The Jewish religion has also been forced to change certain traditions. The great banquet commemorating the passage from slavery to freedom that brings together nearly 5,000 Jews in Colombia will have to be held at home and not in the synagogue this year.

Colombia has reported 2,776 confirmed coronavirus cases and 109 deaths so far.