Hawzah News Agency - (London - UK) - Church of England and Muslim leaders have called for services and congregational activities - including Friday prayers - to be suspended due to the coronavirus epidemic.

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York are calling for Church of England churches to put public worship on hold and become a “different sort of church” in the coming months to face the challenge of coronavirus.

And the Muslim Council of Britain has issued a strong recommendation for Muslim communities across the UK to suspend all congregational activities, given the latest advice on the coronavirus (COVID-19).

Bradford Cathedral will be giving an update on the changes.

In the meantime it says organ recitals, the toddlers' group and Stitching@Bradford Cathedral are cancelled until further notice while the Singing Day with Professor Paul Mealor and the Civic Service have been postponed.

In a joint letter, Archbishops Justin Welby and John Sentamu said it was now necessary to put public services on hold until further notice.

But they said that far from having to “shut up shop”, the Church of England must face the challenge by becoming a radically different kind of church rooted in prayer and serving others.

The Archbishops expressed the desire that church buildings may, where practical, remain open as places of prayer for the community, observing social distancing recommendations.

They also invited clergy to maintain the ancient pattern of daily prayer and, where possible, the eucharist – live streaming their worship if they have the resources to do so.

And they urged congregations to be in the forefront of providing practical care and support for the most poor and the most vulnerable during the crisis.

The archbishops have joined other church leaders in calling for a day of prayer and action this Sunday (Mothering Sunday) particularly remembering those who are sick or anxious and all involved in health and emergency services.

Further information on what the suspension of public worship will mean will be available as soon as possible on the Church of England website.