There’s nothing like a life threatening disease to make you realize it’s time to marry the love of your life, don’t you think?
Fear of contracting the deadly Coronavirus was put on a back burner on Friday in South Korea as some 6,000 couples from 64 different countries all got married in a mass Unification Church wedding.
Granted, some people did wear face masks — safety first, ya know?
“It would be a lie if I said I was not concerned at all about the infection,” Choi Ji-Young, 21, told Agence France-Presse (AFP). “But I feel like I will be protected from the virus today.”
The young woman, who met her new husband only two months ago after being matched by the church, added: “I am overwhelmed that I am getting married today.”
South Korea has recorded 24 cases of coronavirus, which emerged in their neighbor China, where more than 31,000 cases have been confirmed after first emerging in the city of Wuhan.
Seoul has barred entry to foreigners who have recently been the effected area.
Festivals, graduation ceremonies and concerts have been canceled in South Korea due to fears that large events could lead to virus transmission, and authorities have asked religious groups to cooperate in preventing its spread.
The church decided to proceed with the event because it had been “four years in the making,” as part of the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of church founder Sun Myung Moon’s birth, spokesman Jang Young-chul told the AFP. However, followers from China were unable to participate.
The church did hand out face masks to the 30,000 person crowd — but only some people wore them.
COMMENTS POLICY: We have no tolerance for messages of violence, racism, vulgarity, obscenity or other such discourteous behavior. Thank you for contributing to a respectful and useful online dialogue.