The French Government have ordered that public worship cease during the latest coronavirus restrictions. Churches will not close until Monday November 2nd to allow traditional religious celebrations for All-Saints Day over the weekend.
The president of the Bishops’ Conference had written to President Macron asking to keep public worship in case of a new lockdown but after a meeting with religious representatives on Wednesday, the Minister for Internal Affair announced that religious celebrations would stop.
In Germany, Italy, Spain and many other European countries by contrast, churches will stay open.
Some Bishops have publicly contested the new rule.
Mgr Dominique Rey, the Bishop of Fréjus-Toulon, tweeted that freedom of worship is not negotiable. “If shops and schools remain open, Catholics must have the right to attend mass.”
