SINGAPORE - For the first time in about two years on Friday (March 18), Muslims at mosques islandwide no longer had to be spaced apart during congregational prayers.
Given how Singapore's Covid-19 situation has come under control, rules have been eased to allow worshippers to perform their Friday prayers side by side - a departure from the gaps they had to observe from one another since 2020.
Safe management measures (SMMs) for religious activities were loosened on Tuesday, eliminating the need for safe distancing between individuals or groups where people keep their masks on.
The 1,000-person cap on activities such as worship services was also lifted, as long as the 50 per cent venue capacity limit is adhered to.
Vaccination-differentiated SMMs remain for all congregational and other worship services, and all participants - worshippers, as well as religious and supporting workers - must be fully vaccinated.
Mosques did away with safe distancing for congregational prayers from Thursday, although the number of slots for Friday prayer sessions was still the same as last week's.
However, the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis) has said that mosques will open up more spaces, and will announce more details in the coming weeks.
On Friday, Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Masagos Zulkifli told reporters during a visit to the Kampung Siglap Mosque that the community can look forward to more mosque activities to return during the fasting month of Ramadan, which starts on April 2.
"After making adjustments for the safe management measures for the last two years, where our congregants had to maintain safe distancing during our prayers... we are very happy and relieved that we can now pray shoulder to shoulder," he said.
Meanwhile, some churches here are opening up more slots for their services this weekend.
Church Of Our Saviour in Queenstown said on Facebook that there is no need to book seats for these services, though worshippers will still need to verify their vaccination status to enter the church.
The Hope Singapore church near the Bugis area also said on Facebook that worshippers no longer need to be segregated into zones, so more people can be accommodated. More tickets will also be available for its children's church, HopeKids.
"For some of our venues, because of the (previous) limit of 50 for kids' services, some groups of children could only come to church once in two weeks on a rotational basis. Now, with this new SMM, they can attend weekly," said the church.
The Archbishop's Communications Office from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore told The Straits Times (ST) on Friday that the restriction for congregants to stick to worship at only one church has been lifted. Catholics here can now book for mass at other churches if they wish to.
Safe distancing and zoning restrictions have also been abolished at small and medium-sized temples, which will return to pre-Covid-19 operations.
However, larger temples that can accommodate more than 1,000 visitors will still manage the number of visitors with online registrations for time slots for the upcoming Qing Ming Festival on April 5, with visiting expected to last from March 26 to April 17, the Singapore Buddhist Federation said.
In Hindu temples, barricades used to segregate devotees into zones will be removed, ST understands. Visitors still have to check in on the TraceTogether app, and only fully vaccinated devotees are allowed in the temple.
In an advisory issued last Saturday, the Crisis Preparedness for Religious Organisations and the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth said that despite the easing of Covid-19 measures, religious organisations should avoid choke points and spread crowds as evenly as possible.
