Mexico's secret churches: invitation-only Catholic masses defy Covid-19 rules

They call you and tell you the place and the date' - but there are risks, with about 20 praying elderly women busted in one police raid

The invitations arrive via text message or social media. They ask you for a kind of password to let you in," said Jesus Preciado, whose father has attended the secretive gatherings in the Mexican state of Jalisco.

Diego Martinez, whose mother has attended the backstairs events, said they were off-limits to anyone not in the know. It's invitation-only," he said. They call you and tell you the place and the date."