On Wednesday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern encouraged people to use restaurants that did their own food deliveries instead of using Uber Eats. Uber Eats continues to charge high commission rates. When the country moves to Alert Level 3 the problem for some may well be to decide how their restaurant meals will be delivered. But Read more
A leading hospital in Philippine capital Manila is struggling to store unclaimed bodies of patients amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Journalist Arnold Clavio on April 11 posted on social media that bodies have been “piling up” in the hallway of a “certain hospital in Metro Manila.” Clavio did not disclose his source or the name of Read more
Ramadan is a month filled with communal prayer, eating and charity work for Muslims across the world, normally, mosques are brimming with people and large groups of family and friends gather for iftar, the meal that breaks the Ramadan fast at sunset. In 2020 however, these traditions will not be able to happen. Read more
The outbreak of plague in Europe between 1347-1352 CE – known as the Black Death – completely changed the world of medieval Europe. Severe depopulation upset the socio-economic feudal system of the time but the experience of the plague itself affected every aspect of people’s lives. Disease on an epidemic scale was simply part of Read more
Challenging this terrible reality, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a heartfelt appeal for a global ceasefire. Inspiringly he said, “Our world faces a common enemy: COVID-19. The virus does not care about nationality or ethnicity, faction or faith. It attacks all, relentlessly. “Meanwhile, armed conflict rages on around the world. The most vulnerable — women Read more
Singapore’s government is often praised, domestically and internationally, for its planning and foresight — and, in the past few months, particularly for its response to the coronavirus pandemic. But recent developments have demonstrated that you can’t have the foresight for things you refuse to see. A sharp increase in COVID-19 cases among the country’s migrant Read more
A new hymn expressing hope and trust in God has been composed for this time of pandemic. Father Michael Joncas, whose compositions include “On Eagle’s Wings,” is a well-known American composer of liturgical music. He says the idea for the hymn roused him from sleep at three in the morning at the end of last Read more
Pope Francis is calling online Masses and spiritual communion “dangerous”. His concern is that detached from the church, God’s people and the Sacraments, the COVID-19 lockdown may cause people to live the faith only for themselves. After dedicating Sunday’s Mass to expectant mothers, whose needs are in his prayers during the pandemic, Francis focused his Read more
Mass attendance has trebled in a Welsh diocese due to online services being broadcast. The Welsh bishops’ conference website says about 1300 people viewed the Palm Sunday Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral. This is three times the normal congregation for that service. There has also been a vast increase in daily Mass attendance in the Read more
Concerned Greek authorities were at the ready to monitor Orthodox worshippers on Sunday as the faithful celebrated Easter. Ensuring worshippers complied with the country’s bans on movement amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic were of concern to the authorities. Law enforcers monitored churches. In addition, streets were patrolled and drones deployed. Nikos Hardalias, Greece’s civil protection Read more