Jakarta (ANTARA) – The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has sought the public’s compliance with emergency restrictions on community activities (emergency PPKM) that will be in effect on July 3-20, 2021, since the policy is for the common good.
“In general, the MUI supports the policies adopted by the government in order to control the spread of COVID-19 and prevent as many victims as possible,” Chairman of MUI Miftahul Akhyar noted in a written statement here on Saturday.
Akhyar pointed to several fatwas on worship activities issued by the MUI amid the COVID-19 pandemic that could serve as a reference in determining technical policies.
The implementation of emergency PPKM will further bolster the MUI-issued fatwa in an effort to prevent and overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.
Several recommendations by MUI for the emergency PPKM period encompass worship activities at mosques, mushalla, and other places of worship that can result in crowds, such as recitations, majlis taklim, tahlil, istighatsah kubra, and other worship activities to take into account the factual conditions in the area.
For areas where cases are spiraling out of control, people can conduct worship at home. Meanwhile, in areas where cases are under control, worship can be held at mosques with stringent adherence to health protocols.
Mosques and places of worship are still allowed to perform the call to prayer, albeit by officers that have done it regularly. Meanwhile, the Rawatib sunnah prayer can be performed at home.
Furthermore, areas where the transmission of COVID-19 is quite high, Friday prayers may not be held at mosques, and in its place, the public can perform the Dzuhur prayer at home.
The MUI has left the decision on holding the Eid al-Adha prayer to the government to come up with the best policy for the common good.
Meanwhile, mosque administrators can optimize mosques as a means to edify residents, offer counseling, and provide assistance to worshipers that contracted COVID-19.
Mosques and prayer rooms can also function as centers of socio-religious activities, for instance, by coordinating the cutting of qurban for worshipers, holding charity, and conducting humanitarian activities while still adhering to the set health protocols.
Source: Antara News