MANILA, Philippines — If things get worse, Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David told priests in the diocese to be ready to open their churches and convert them into health facilities amid the rising cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Metro Manila.

David said in a pastoral letter yesterday that Caloocan churches should be readied in case health authorities in the metropolis would need additional health facilities “in the name of Christian compassion and charity.”

“In the event that our public health care facilities and services become insufficient or unable to adequately respond to the adverse effects of this epidemic in our communities, let us make ourselves ready to volunteer and mobilize other volunteers to assist the public sector in attending to the victims,” David said.

“If we need to open our churches, chapels and schools and turn them into temporary field hospitals for the sick, we should do so in the name of Christian compassion and charity,” he added.

Following the government’s implementation of the community quarantine, David issued a pastoral letter yesterday reminding the faithful and the clergy in Caloocan that all masses and other Church gatherings in the diocese will be suspended starting today until April 14.

David said they will cooperate with the directives from the civil and health authorities to suspend all mass gatherings in a bid to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and to keep the communities safe and healthy.

He said that the faithful can still hear mass through their live-streamed masses on Facebook and through Church-run TV Maria and Radio Veritas.

“Except during Sundays and holy days of obligation when the faithful are inclined to assemble spontaneously in our parish churches, our parish churches will be kept open for those among our faithful who might wish to pray privately, as well as those who might need our assistance in any way,” he said.

But he noted that the priests should still maintain the safe distance from each other and observe all the necessary precautionary measures against the coronavirus.

He said that weddings, baptisms and confirmation will be also be deferred during the month-long community quarantine, except events “that can no longer be postponed due to the enormity of the preparations involved” but subject to severe restrictions as to the number of participants and attendees.

In another development, Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo said that all Catholic bishops in the National Capital Region (NCR) have agreed in a meeting on Friday to suspend all public masses and gatherings starting today until April 14.

Pabillo, who initiated an online Eucharistic celebration yesterday, said that the Catholic Church will continue to draw close to Jesus Christ as he urged the faithful to see the COVID-19 crisis as an opportunity and avenue to grow their faith to God.

“It seems that we will be in this for the long haul. So, that means for a month we will be in this situation. Although we may be deprived of physical participation of the Church, we will continue to draw close to the Lord,” Pabillo said.

“Let us see other opportunities, other venues of growing in the faith, and one is this online celebration of Eucharist. And we can also take this opportunity when life is now slower because of many restrictions given to us in prayers in the home, in the families, we can have time to reflect over the word of God,” he added.

In a circular, the Diocese of Legaspi has suspended public masses and Church gatherings indefinitely while the dioceses of Urdaneta have suspended masses on March 22 and 29 and Caceres on March 14 until March 20.