Can churches reopen amid the pandemic? Nigerian Christian Association weighs in
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has weighed on following the continuous pressure on the government by some Nigerian Christians to reopen churches
Churches and other religious centres were closed by the Federal Government to contain the spread of COVID-19, but there had been pressures from many church leaders and members for the reopening of churches due to the step by step easing of the lockdown.
Moreover, after the USA president Donald Trump spoke and demanded that churches in the United States be reopened over the weekend, the pressure seem to have escalated.
A number of Christian leaders are of the opinion that the continuous closure of churches when markets and other public institutions were reopened was suspicious and seems like a calculated attempt to weaken the growth of the church in Nigeria.
However, in an official statement, personally signed by the president of CAN, Rev Supo Ayokunle, it is opined that it was not yet time for churches to reopen.
According to Rev. Ayokunle, the relaxation of lockdown had seen the country witness more coronavirus infection.
“The above relaxation has on the other hand increased the pressure mounted on us, church leaders, from our members for the churches and other places of worship to be opened.
“Champions for the reopening of worship centres argue that if people had contracted the virus in the markets and other places, closing the church from worshipping becomes unreasonable!
“It is like using medicine after death! Furthermore, the church is more organised and a place of healing,” Rev. Ayokunle said.
Despite these, the CAN President urge “all churches to remain closed because the daily increasing infected people in Nigeria is dangerous for the survival of us all.”
He called for caution among churches for reopening, saying “the church needs to exercise restrain at this time so that we might not naively and overzealously plunge our members into regrettable destruction and sorrow.”
