As we face another three weeks of lockdown, families of all faiths and none are bracing themselves for yet more disruption to their daily lives. We all struggle with the challenge of finding new ways of doing things that we have previously taken for granted.
Many families of faith have had to celebrate their religious festivals in an entirely different way. As the holy month of Ramadan approaches, Muslim families are preparing to observe fasting whilst exercising social distancing and, for many, self-isolation. Ramadan prayer timetables that are distributed every year no longer have a column to show Mosque prayer times because mosques are closed during the pandemic.
This year, prayers, charity work and communicating with family, friends and neighbours have moved online, but people who are not conversant with using the internet, FaceTime or WhatsApp still need support. It has become the norm for me to teach some of my constituents how to use Zoom to connect them to prayers and other sources of emotional comfort at this testing time.