Catholic Tokyo Archdiocese
Current measures while under the state of emergency

April 27, 2020

1: In order to protect life, let us basically stay home.
Especially for the elderly and those with chronic illness, kindly participate in community prayers while staying at home.

2: Dispensation from the obligation to attend Sunday Mass
For the time being, all the faithful of the Tokyo Archdiocese are dispensed from their obligation to attend Sunday Mass.

3: Suspension of public masses
For the time being, public masses with unspecified number of people attending will be suspended.

4: Cancellation of various events and activities
Except for urgent and important matters, regardless of the size, all events, meetings and gatherings aside from the Holy Mass must be canceled or postponed to a date after the emergency declaration is lifted.

5: Wedding Ceremonies
Concerning weddings, if the possibility of postponement is difficult, kindly take adequate measures against infection and keep social distancing during the ceremony.

6: Funeral Services
With regard to funerals, we are putting at risk not only the priest and those attending the ceremony, but also the staff of the funeral services. It is recommended that the bereaved family thoroughly discuss the matter with the parish priest, considering the possibility of proceeding with the cremation first and having the funeral at a later date when the situation has settled down.

In various circumstances, even on occasions carried out on a very small scale, let us take adequate precautionary measures against COVID-19 infections and observe social distancing.

Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi, SVD
Archbishop of Tokyo