MANILA – With the closure of cemeteries across the country during Halloween, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) is urging all Filipino Catholics to send prayer requests for their departed loved ones via the Undas website.
CBCP Media Office director Msgr. Pedro Quitorio said the Undas website will have some new features this year for Filipinos who cannot go to the cemetery on Nov. 1 (All Saints’ Day) and Nov. 2 (All Souls’ Day).
“There will be live online Masses that will be streamed from different places,” Quitorio said in a statement posted on the CBCP news website. “One can even light a candle online while praying for their dear departed.”
The website also offers audio and video reflection and catechesis.
Now in its ninth year, the website was originally intended for Filipino seafarers and those in other countries who had no way of celebrating Undas. It initially highlighted an online facility to request for Masses for their beloved dead.
The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases recently ordered the nationwide closure of cemeteries from Oct. 29 to Nov. 4.
Outside of the period, private and public cemeteries, memorial parks and columbariums in the region must implement a maximum capacity of 30 percent. Visitors must observe minimum health protocols such as wearing of face masks and face shields and social distancing, while age restrictions would not apply to visitors./PN
