As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
“A federal judge quoted Hebrews 10:25 as he ruled against Mayor Muriel Bowser’s restriction on outdoor church services of more than 100 people, allowing Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., to resume in-person outdoor services.” - C.Post
In response to new COVID outbreak clusters, the state “has decided to limit capacity of houses of worship within the clusters to ten people, and to entirely ban mass gatherings in the cluster areas.
“The Department of Justice is backing Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., in its lawsuit against Mayor Murriel Bowser for unfairly applying a ban on outdoor church services of more than 100 people during the COVID-19 pandemic.” - C.Post
“Los Angeles County representatives requested a hearing for civil contempt against MacArthur, who has continued to hold services at his Grace Community Church despite a ban on large gatherings issued by Gov. Gavin Newsom that includes services in houses of worship.” - C.Leaders
“…it seems necessary to amend the statement, ‘We must obey the government unless the government explicitly tells us to disobey God,’ to something like this: ‘We must obey the government (1) unless the government explicitly tells us to disobey God, or (2) unless the government exceeds its jurisdiction so as to speak authoritatively into a sphere regulated by another, God-instituted authority.’” -
CHBC sued, “contending the district’s restrictions in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic violate the congregation’s First Amendment rights and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
“The pastor of a 3,000-seat California church said he will stop fighting Santa Clara County and hold services in the church parking lot as per local COVID-19 guidelines after fines rose to over $112,000. The county said it will not forgive the fines.” - CPost
“I believe it is possible for the California State Government and communities of faith in California to have a more coordinated and united effort in addressing the Coronavirus pandemic and civil unrest in our society.” - Kendall Laughlin, Jr.
My heart goes out to churches in places where COVID-related health orders have made it impossible to “gather in a normal way,” to use a phrase from Grace Community Church’s (GCC’s) “Statement from Pastor and Elders.”
Discussion