“Coronavirus” is actually a category of viruses, sort of like “Poodle” is a category of dogs. The virus popularly known as “coronavirus” is more precisely known as SARS-CoV-2 (though also referred to as 2019-ncov, for “2019 Novel Coronavirus”) and is in the coronavirus family. One of the best sources of information on the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the disease COVID-19 is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The interactive data map from Johns Hopkins Center for Systems Science and Engineering (verified safe link) is also a great source of visualized data, close to “real time.”
Probably the best COVID-19 information in Canada.
Keep an eye out as well for Coronavirus Scams.
For related posts at SharperIron, see also COVID-19.
"Conservative pastors and leaders are encouraging the shot while the people in the pews have been more divided." - C.Today
"Theologically fraught conspiracy theories have been swirling online, particularly in some evangelical circles. In a recent video posted online, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., similarly suggested — without evidence — a connection between the Mark of the Beast and vaccines." - NPR
"...only 10 percent of British adults said their faith grew stronger as a result of the pandemic. In Japan, only 5 percent say religion came to play a stronger role in their lives.... Nearly three-in-ten Americans (28 percent) report stronger personal faith because of the pandemic" - The Hill
"Not having taste or smell has been one of the strangest experiences of my life. I had no symptoms of Covid until I couldn’t smell garlic bread! ....How many of us have lost our 'taste and desire' for God’s Word?" - Treg Spicer
"Most churchgoers experienced some type of back-and-forth with the availability of in-person services. For 3 in 10 (31%), in-person services stopped at their church for a short period of time and have since resumed. Another 22% say in-person services were halted for much of the year but have resumed." - LifeWay
"Handing down judgment on Wednesday, Lord Braid said the Scottish rules were a disproportionate interference of Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights." - C.Today
"At some point after post-lockdown onset, I noticed that the less I saw people, the less I wanted to see people. I just got comfortable like a hobbit." - WORLD
Though reluctance toward COVID vaccination seems to be on the decline, Pew Research found that evangelicals are among the most hesitant in the U.S.
“Hesitancy” is a broad term, and there’s plenty of room for rational and well informed people to “hesitate.” We know the vaccines were developed much faster than usual. We know that the RNA based vaccines use a partially new approach.
But many Christians aren’t just hesitating. They’re firmly rejecting. And it certainly appears that many are hesitating or rejecting for poor reasons. We owe it to ourselves, our fellow citizens, our fellow believers, and our Lord to be well-informed and well-reasoned on this.
I’m no expert in immunology, or bioethics, but what follows draws from people who are. To the critically minded—good for you! I’m all for asking good questions and holding answers up to strong standards. That said, this is an inductive case and doesn’t rise or fall on any one point, or even several.
