Since March 15, 2020, Rwanda has closed places of worship due to the COVID-19 outbreak and Christians have been patiently praying and waiting for things to return to normal. Luckily, the Cabinet meeting held on 15th July 2020, chaired by the President of the Republic H.E Paul KAGAME, declared the reopening of places of worship provided measures are in place to control the pandemic. We say ‘’progressive reopening” as there are a number of requirements to be fulfilled by churches in order to be allowed to reopen. Some churches have met those requirements and have enjoyed their first gatherings on July 19, 2020 while the others are still struggling to meet the hygiene requirements set to contain the spread of corona virus. Special teams from the Local Authority are still visiting each and every place of worship in order to check whether the measures to reopen are met or not.
Shyogwe Diocese is blessed to be among churches which have had some parishes and chapels to be among the first to have Sunday services on July 19, 2020. However, some places of worship in Shyogwe Diocese still have some work to do before obtaining the license to reopen. Christians, who attended the first worship services, were very thrilled and amazed to worship the Lord in normal places after 127 days of closure.
Church leaders are very thankful to the government for considering their request to reopen churches and are very committed to collaborating with the government to ensure that worship services are safe for people.
By Marcel SEBAHIRE