Bishop Joseph Toal of Motherwell, Scotland, has written a letter to the faithful of his diocese, encouraging them to comply with stringent regulations the Scottish government has put in place to counter the spread of coronavirus. He says the severity of the situation warrants emergency measures. Bishop Toal's letter acknowledges the view taken by the Catholic bishops of Scotland, who earlier this week said they were "perplexed" by the decision to close houses of worship in Scotland, and expressed their "dismay" at the same. Bishop Toal nevertheless says that the faithful ought not gather for Mass or other services while required by law to remain at home. "As we are well aware, the gravity of the threat posed by the more rapid spread of the virus in recent weeks led to the Scottish Government introducing a law telling us all to stay at home unless we have an essential reason for leaving our homes," Bishop Toal wrote in the letter, posted to the diocesan Facebook page on Friday. He said his understanding of the need for such a law is "the severity of the situation we are in and the resulting need to limit moments of physical social contact with one another as much as possible." "Presented with this reality," Bishop Toal  continued, "my judgement as a Catholic Bishop is that we should not gather for Mass or other public services while we are required by law to stay at home for our own safety and that of other people." The Catholic Bishops of Scotland issued a statement earlier this week, in which they said they "appreciate the difficult choices facing the Scottish Government" and reiterated their proven readiness "both to cooperate with and to support its efforts in protecting the common good," including steps to curtail public worship "in extreme circumstances and for a limited period."