Faithwire
  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • News
  • Politics
  • Coronavirus Updates
  • Faith
  • Opinion
  • Christmas
  • Set Free Course

Worshippers Asked to Ditch Handshakes and Embrace ‘Elbow Bumps’ as Coronavirus Spreads

Photo by Getty Images
Photo by Getty Images
Share Tweet
By Will Maule
Author

March 5, 2020

As the coronavirus continues to spread across the globe, many religious traditions are being profoundly impacted. From closing down churches to banning communion, religious leaders are scrambling to do everything in their power to stop the spread of the disease among their congregations.

Olympian Stood on a Highway and Wanted to End It All, but God Stepped In

Worship services at a catholic church in Wisconsin have looked very different since the outbreak. Acting on their pastor’s orders, parishioners at St. Mary Catholic Church of Kenosha have exchanged germ-spreading handshakes for a small bow.

“For people who are very committed to coming to Mass and praying together as a community, this is going to be difficult for them,” the church’s pastor, Rev. Roman Stikel, told the New York Times. “What we’ll hope and pray for is that this is something that will pass.”

At Temple De Hirsch Sinai synagogue in Seattle, worshippers have been instructed to cease hugging and kissing. Instead, they are to engage in an unconventional “elbow bump.” This, the leaders say, is a “more appropriate way of offering a warm welcome while also staying healthy.”

In the Islamic world, significant steps have been taken to prevent Muslims from spreading the disease while observing traditional journeys of pilgrimage. Last week, Saudi Arabia announced it would be banning all foreign visitors from making the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina — the holiest sites in Islam. Over two million people visit Mecca every single year.

Iran, which has suffered the highest rates of infection outside mainland China, has taken the drastic action of canceling Friday prayers in all the nation’s major cities. Stopping mass gatherings, they say, will stem the flow of transmission.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ordered Pastor to be Jailed Without Court Hearing

“The virus has no wings to fly,” Iranian Health Ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said of the health epidemic, according to Fox News. “We are the ones who transfer it to each other.”

The global death toll is now pushing towards 3,500, with the total number of people infected just under 100,000.

This week, the World Health Organization announced that 3.4 percent of people infected with the COVID-19 globally have died, making it more deadly than the common flu.

Latest

  • News

    Stunning Poll Reveals ‘Shocking’ Percentage of American Pastors Holding to Biblical Worldview

  • Culture

    ‘Hollywood Is Not America’: Pop Star Katy Perry’s Realization About Culture While Living in Kentucky

  • Faith

    Christian Teen Was Diagnosed With an Inoperable Cancerous Brain Tumor. 13 Years Later, His Story Proves How God Uses Pain for Purpose

  • Entertainment

    Disney+ Reportedly Set to Make This Move to Help Make Platform ‘Family-Friendly’

  • News

    Texas Teen Goes to Bathroom at NBA Game, Is Found 10 Days Later Sold for Sex in Oklahoma Hotel


Navigation

  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Staff
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram

Subscribe to the Newsletter

Sign up to get our newsletter your inbox every day.

Newsletter Signup

Do you want to read
more articles like this?