A Limpopo church has decided to ban worshippers from shaking hands, in an effort to curb the possible spread of the coronavirus. 

Limpopo Health MEC Phophi Ramathuba visited Manna Tabernacle of Witness Church, situated just 10km outside the Polokwane CBD, on Sunday during her Covid-19 awareness campaign in the province. 

On arrival at the church, two placards can be seen stuck on pillars, cautioning congregants not to shake hands. Before you enter the church, the ushers sanitise your hands. 

Pastor Strike Manganyi said, because the service was a public gathering with people coming from different places, it was important for the church to put measures in place.

He said the church had also brought in health professionals to give talks and advise them on how they could reduce the risks of people contracting the virus. 

Manganyi said it was important for the church to be educated about the virus. 

"You know the church, when I greet you and I welcome you, I must shake your hand. If I don't, I feel abit rude. But in a time like this, where we are fighting this virus, it is very much important to make sure we have those measures in place. Even at the bathroom, we also have sanitisers," he said. 

The church is also cleaning its podiums and microphones after each speaker. 

Easter gatherings

Churches are expected to convene conferences over the Easter long weekend, with congregants travelling from various provinces. Manganyi said his church, however, was considering other options this year, like using the internet and social media platforms to reach congregants. 

"We must make sure that, while we believe in divine health, it's important for us to take caution. We don't want to see our people dying," he said. 

Speaking to the congregation, Ramathuba urged them to start changing their lifestyle and church habits. She cautioned churches to lend a hand in fighting the virus, even if it meant changing how communion was served. 

Ramathuba told worshippers that the Capricorn FET College students who returned from China had all tested negative for the virus.

She also explained why The Ranch Resort was chosen as a quarantine site, and stressed that the South African citizens repatriated from Wuhan were not sick. 

"What is critical and important is to say that the virus is here [and] we can't run away from it. We have got so many cases. Our people are based in Gauteng and will be coming back home. So, we can never say it is not in Limpopo.

"It's going to be Good Friday, Easter [and] and the question is, do we still continue with church gatherings? Do we still serve holy communion in the manner we serve it? We have to sit down as church council and say, 'how do we adjust our lifestyle'," Ramathuba said. 

With the country's confirmed cases increasing daily - sitting at 51 as of Sunday - she said she would be meeting with the leadership of South African Council of Churches in the province, where she would continue to emphasise the standard recommendations to prevent the infection from spreading.