Slovenian bishops welcome yesterday's decision of the Republic of Slovenia's government to lift the ban on religious ceremonies with a special decree and guarantee believers the right to public worship.

The decree, which follows the German model, contains special provisions for the safe performance of religious ceremonies and appropriate regulation of freedom of religion in the current state of the Covid-19 epidemic. At the same time, the bishops are aware of the problematic epidemiological situation in our country. Therefore, the bishops will publish special instructions for priests and believers on Friday, December 18, 2020. Based on the instructions, priests will start offering Holy Masses on Saturday, December 19, 2020. Instructions will be available tomorrow afternoon at the Catholic Church's website. The bishops also call on all priests and believers to strictly observe all measures to protect health in religious ceremonies.

Dr Tadej Jakopič