By Jonathan McQuie
Services for all major religions across the City of Greater Dandenong have been placed on pause after the Federal Government banned indoor gatherings of more than 100 people, including for religious purposes.
Some congregations have chosen to shift online, including Faith Christian Church, which is live-streaming its services via its Facebook Page at 10:00 and 5:30 PM each Sunday.
Pastor Alex Attard says that the church is committed to following the regulations put in place by the authorities, but are looking for how to assist their congregation in the meantime.
“We’ll be streaming services every week as well as continuing to support our community as we always have,” he said.
“The format may look different. Our faith remains the same.”
For St Mary’s Catholic Church, decisions were taken out of their hands after the Archbishop announced that all public masses in Victoria will be cancelled.
Congregants are still welcome to attend the church for private prayer, but are encouraged to pray in their homes.
Father Brendan Lane said that St Mary’s isn’t able to contact parishioners through social media, making it difficult to keep in contact with them.
“If they come here on Sunday, there’s nothing that’s going on,” Fr Lane said.
Funerals, baptisms, and weddings are still able to be held, however the crowd will much be reduced, possibly even to just the immediate family.
Fr Lane encouraged the community to pray for a swift solution to the epidemic, saying that a lengthy stop could be devastating for them.
“We need a lot of people praying for some solution for this.
“A six month stop would be devastating for us if it goes for a long time.”
The Islamic community at the Emir Sultan Mosque has also ceased regular religious services, announcing the cessation of regular Friday prayers.
However, the mosque will remain open for those wishing to pray in isolation or seeking spiritual counselling and guidance.
Members of the congregation are able to use the Mosque’s WhatsApp group to stay in touch, while local elders are assisting with plans to assist those members of the community who are most in need.
The Bright Moon Buddhist Society, Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple, and the Gurudwara Sri Guru Granth Sahib were all unable to provide comment.
