Due to the Corona Virus panic the URC Synod has advised all churches to close at least until Eastrr. I think this is ludicrous. Of all the times in the year, surely Lent and Easter is when the church must be open ?
Even the Vatican has announced that they are cancelling Easter.
I do not think it is too careful, especially since social distancing rules suggest no larger groups than 10.
@pevaquark shared this in another thread, how one person in Korea resulted in spreading it to over 1000 people in her community and is attributed to how it became a significant outbreak instead of staying contained.
2 Likes
Yes, definitely. Churches are groups of more than ten. It is an act of love for neighbor to aid everyone in limiting their contact with people, not to mention part of submitting to government authorities. Asking churches to move to virtual services has everything to do with protecting public health and nothing to do with persecution or suppression of religion. There is absolutely no good reason I can think of that would push Christians to civil disobedience on this.
7 Likes
I agree with others. My family and I will be very very disappointed if we do not attend any Holy Week services, but there are more important things than my temporary disappointment. We can all remember that āwhere two or three gather in my name, there I am with them.ā
1 Like
Our church is actively calling members and soliciting online volunteers to fill needs while we are in shutdown mode. We have a small group program, but at present many of the small groups are not meeting either, out of concern for spreading the virus.
We Christians ā of all people ā should be most concerned about the āleast of these.ā And the worst thing we can do for the most vulnerable parts of our population is to gather together. Letās affirm the ethical core of our faith: love for neighbor (and enemy!), and adapt the outward form of our religious practices to the days the we live in.
A quote making its way around the internet from Luther 500 years ago when facing an outbreak of the plague:
"I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine and take it. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance inflict and pollute others and so cause their death as a result of my negligence. If God should wish to take me, he will surely find me and I have done what he has expected of me and so I am not responsible for either my own death or the death of others.ā
3 Likes
My life is not changing. If I get sick, Iāll lock myself away for 10 days or so. Outside of that, the virus is not affecting my life.
97% survival rate.
80% survive without needing medical attention and simply have sore throat, a cough, running nose and canāt breath as well.
3% is the mortality rate that affects mostly those with a compromised immune system.
What I think is a good idea is that many stores are doing a senior citizen shopping hour(s) for 1-2 hours when they first open after closing early and doing in depth sanitization to help reduce the risk of them getting sick. Those with a weakened immune system need to take preventive measures and self isolate.
Me and about 60 others between 25 and 35 are meeting up on Sunday at the church. The elderly and one may with HIV are not coming. The elders are not coming either. Most of us donāt even live near our grandparents and are not going to be visiting them. Today at around 6pm about 15 of us are meeting up on the beach for a bible study.
I strongly believe thst those with a compromised immune system need to take preventative action to help them not get sick and the rest of they even get sick will most likely be ok based off of statistics.
I think each congregation and person needs to be aware of the situation and make choices based off of that.
I believe that churches should shut down for now until this whole thing blows overs. Asides from watching my church gives sermons via TV/online, I have been doing my own Bible studies and went and bought some Bible study books on both Daniel and Revelation and they have been helping fill the void of both Sunday school and sermon. I have also taken idea of singing a hymn and Psalm each morning when i wake up and thank God that Iām alive and well and pray for the world that God will help us overcome the virus and be with those infected. I have been basically having my own little Sunday church whenever i wake up and do Bible study each morning.
I also agree with you as I love Holy Week and mostly loved to attend other then Easter Sunday is Maundy Thursday service at my church. But, if we must forsake a large gathering for a brief while to help those most vulnerable then I am willing to do it.
2 Likes
Lots of people with uncompromized immune systems are going out and unknowingly spreading the virus before they become symptomatic. The attitude you describe strikes me as selfish and irresponsible.
I think some of the other views are the same. Selfish and overly controlling and restrictive for no real solid reasons.
If 80% of the people who get this virus donāt even need medical attention then should not the 3% be the ones that focus more on self isolation and going to stores early in the morning after sanitization? In a century I doubt this thing will even be remembered. How many things carry a risk of 2-3% mortality or seriously injured rates? Why should 100% of people not go to work, not go to church, not go out hiking, but go to the store and so on for 3% when thatās 3% could take the same measures and be safe regardless if me and 300,000,000 other people still go about our lives? Why canāt we use the same measures as we use during the flu virus? Those sick and those with compromised immune systems avoid everyone. Those who are sick, with no symptoms, should still not have the option to visit those with compromised immune systems because those people with the compromised immune system should already self isolate.
I think that is the most logical and considerate option.
Before coming to this conclusion about coronavirus, would you at least listen to what the experts are saying. Hereās a good place to start:
Yes. I will look at it and see if any of it changes my view on whatās the best way for the majority of people to handle it. Iāve read a bunch, and most of
It just all seems to want a overly restrictive approach to something that causes 80% of people to just have runny noses and every few days it goes from for just 2 weeks to few weeks to no solid deadline and ectā¦ thatās something Iām simply not willing to do and something I donāt actually believe is nor compassionate.
If 3% self isolate, it wonāt matter that much what 80% does any more than if 100% isolate. Thatās my issue. I think 3% isolating yourself protect themselves will have the same affect as 100% isolating themselves. Especially if itās over months.
But I will read that specific link and see if it changes my mind verses the other links and podcasts Iāve listened to on it or read.
You seem to be ignoring the fact that it causes 20% to be hospitalized in intensive care. Thatās really serious when you factor in how contagious it is. They are saying the average infected person infects 3 others and between 60-80% of the population will be infected. 60% of the population is 196 million people. If 20% need to be hospitalized, that is 39.2 million people. There are 924,000 hospital beds total in the country. None of the other reasons people need hospital beds went away last week.
1 Like
Well, you are wrong, and that isnāt how epidemics work.
Then you are doing your bit to kill others.
1 Like
Granted the whole population will not all be infected at once, but there could be 4.8 million people who need hospitalization at the same time, based on current projections.
Harvardās projections show if 50% of all currently occupied hospital beds were emptied and sizable percentages of Americans were infected, the country would need at least three times more beds to care for everyone.
Those models line up with James Lawler, an infectious disease doctor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center who forecasted in a recent presentation to hospital insiders that the U.S. may eventually have as many as 96 million cases, resulting in 4.8 million hospitalizations. He told Axios he stands by those projections.
So whatās the age and and health condition of the 17% that get sick and go to the hospital? What are those symptoms? Seems to be they have a hard time breathing. So is that 17% hooked up to oxygen machines or are they given medication? How long are they held at the hospital? Weeks or a few days or just over night?
When I read examples of the typical healthy person heading to the hospital who has the virus they seem to be given medication and held a few days and released and told to self isolate.
What about all the poor people who love pay check to pay check and is the stereotypical single parent who works? Now they are suppose to not take their kids to daycare, schools are closed? Do they stay home since they canāt afford a babysitter? Do they still work? Does their job shut down for two weeks and they just go get a credit card to pull through for 2+ weeks?
Anyways, after work ( there are 20+ others here working on the house) and after a beach party with 300+ people I may have time to read through the link and respond more to questions.
In the meantime, I hope everyone is practicing what they preach and they are not shopping, not going to work since not everyone is privileged to work from home, and they are not going to parks or out hiking and just going to stay home for 2+ weeks. Otherwise, itās just hypocrisy.
So are you if you leave your houseā¦
- Gathering with a large group causes orders of magnitude greater risk to others than simply leaving the house.
- Iām not leaving my house.
1 Like