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Undas among 'most sacred' Filipino traditions, says parish priest

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Gillan Ropero, ABS-CBN News

MANILA - All Souls&#x27; Day remains to be one of the &quot;most sacred&quot; Filipino traditions, a parish priest said Monday as majority of the faithful flocked to churches due to the closure of cemeteries on All Saints&#x27; Day.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/20/21/cemeteries-closed-during-undas-to-curb-covid-19-spread">DILG: Cemeteries closed from Oct. 29 to Nov. 2 as COVID precaution</a></li></ul>Crowds in cemeteries and columbaries can be regulated if people are allowed to visit more often, according to Fr. Aris Sison, parish priest of St John Paul II Church in the Diocese of Cubao.&quot;I have learned from the experience of Filipinos that Undas is one of the most sacred Filipinos traditions. It seems to be as sacred as Holy Week. It’s just so important for Filipinos to be able to visit the graves their loved ones,&quot; he told ANC&#x27;s Headstart.&quot;I understand perfectly this is already the second year that columbaries, cemeteries are closed for these things. Perhaps this is a sacrifice we have to make during this time of the pandemic. But I think it’s also possible to regulate the influx of people.&quot;Deaths during the pandemic are &quot;very difficult, very painful&quot; because people are unable to say goodbye, Sison said.&quot;I&#x27;m sure you’ve heard of stories of patients who entered the hospital and their families were never able to talk to them, visit them and all they got after a few days are ashes of their loved ones,&quot; he said.&quot;COVID deaths, deaths during period of this pandemic have been very difficult, very painful. It is difficult when you are not able to say goodbye. It is difficult when you are not able to grieve, mourn, condole with the families of the deceased.&quot;Sison also observed that fewer people have returned to churches following the recent lockdown.&quot;I have learned it is important that people feel safe inside the Church...And so if they&#x27;re afraid, I tell them take your time. We continue to invite them to show them that the Church is safe,&quot; he said.Quezon City has allowed churches to accommodate 60 percent of its capacity since Oct. 22 but the parish has decided to keep its 25 percent capacity, Sison said.&quot;We would like to maintain physical distancing inside the church. Yesterday we had very good attendance, we now have 2 masses on Sundays,&quot; he said.The Catholic Bishops&#x27; Conference of the Philippines earlier called on government to allow churches to accommodate half of its capacity under Alert Level 2.Metro Manila was placed under Alert Level 3, which allows 30 percnet of venue capacity, from Nov. 1 to 14.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/video/news/10/31/21/cbcp-hopes-for-50pct-church-capacity-under-lower-alert-level">CBCP hopes for 50pct capacity for churches under lower COVID-19 alert level</a></li></ul>

All Souls' Day remains to be one of the 'most sacred' Filipino traditions, a parish priest said Monday as majority of the faithful flocked to churches due to the closure of cemeteries on All Saints' Day.

Undas among 'most sacred' Filipino traditions, says parish priest

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Undas among 'most sacred' Filipino traditions, says parish priest

Gillan Ropero,

ABS-CBN News

Published Nov 01, 2021 11:05 AM PHT

Read More:

Headstart

Undas 2021

Aris Sison

St John Paul II Church

COVID-19

Catholic Church

religion

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