“Brad Amos, a former video editor at Ramsey Solutions, claimed he was fired for failing to follow Ramsey’s faith-based beliefs on how to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.” - RNS
Pew: At least four-in-ten U.S. adults have faced high levels of psychological distress during COVID-19 pandemic
“those with lower family incomes (53%) are more likely than those from middle- (38%) and high-income households (30%) to have experienced high psychological distress at least once since March 2020” - Pew
Pew: Key findings about COVID-19 restrictions that affected religious groups around the world in 2020
“Religious groups criticized government-mandated public health measures in 54 countries (27% of all analyzed), often stating the rules were a violation of religious freedom.” - Pew
Drink less, exercise more and take in the air – sage advice on pandemic living from an 18th-century poem
“A respiratory disease has spread far and wide. Conflicts at home and abroad pose dire challenges. The public is overwhelmed by questions of what to read and whom to trust …. I am describing mid-18th century Britain.” - The Conversation
A dip in COVID optimism
“Confidence that the pandemic was getting better plummeted in July, as more Americans now say the situation is getting worse (45%) than better (40%), according to Gallup.” - Lifeway
Pew Research: Pastors Often Discussed Election, Pandemic and Racism in Fall of 2020
“… among churches that posted their sermons, homilies or worship services online between Aug. 31 and Nov. 8, 2020, two-thirds posted at least one message from the pulpit mentioning the election. But these rates varied considerably among the four major Christian groups” - Pew
86 test positive for COVID-19 after Illinois megachurch camp and conference
“Nearly 100 mostly unvaccinated teenagers and adults connected to a camp and conference recently held by the Illinois-based multi-campus The Crossing Church have tested positive for COVID-19, prompting Gov. J.B. Pritzker to reiterate his call for residents to get vaccinated.” - C.Post
Gen Z lost touch with faith communities during pandemic but kept the faith, says study
“Half of young people (ages 13 to 25) thought their faith communities had done well managing the COVID pandemic even though 90% reported receiving no personal contact from clergy.” - RNS
Church Decline and Recovery During COVID-19, Part 2
“The National COVID-19 Church Attendance Project (NCCAP) represents our efforts to try to see the bigger picture. By gathering as many individual church stories as possible, from all over the country, we aim to provide a broad sense of the impact of COVID on the church and what the path to recovery has looked like so far.” - C.Today
Friendly Neighborhood Epidemiologist Deploys Expert Advice With Christian Love
“Smith started Friendly Neighbor Epidemiologist, a Facebook page, in March 2020 … Since then, the page, written in Smith’s friendly, informational voice, has grown to more than 96,000 followers. About half are evangelical Christians, she said. But threats and pushback have also followed” - C.Today