UMCOR COVID-19 Response
The United Methodist Committee on Relief has started a special fund for COVID-19 response. (UMCOR Image)
Despite our best efforts to be courageous and comforting during the coronavirus pandemic, sometimes the somber gets turned up a notch when it comes to ways that the church’s life has been disrupted.
Already the 2020 General Conference has been postponed until 2021 and all jurisdictional conferences have been cancelled. Many U.S. annual conferences that typically meet in late spring and early summer have been cancelled, while those in Africa, Europe and Asia still have uncertain schedules. So far, we’ve received cancellation or postponement notices from North Alabama, North Texas, Desert Southwest, Michigan, and the Greater Northwest combined conference, which includes Alaska, Pacific Northwest and Oregon-Idaho conferences.
A quick trip around other conference websites found cancellations and/or postponements:
- California-Nevada rescheduled for Sept.18-21.
- Mountain Sky Conference will be held online June 19-20.
- Great Plains Conference will hold a one-day business meeting on Saturday, May 30 using conference call technology to care for items that cannot be delayed. A previously scheduled special session will be held Oct. 1-3.
- Iowa Annual Conference will meet via teleconference sometime in the fall.
- Oklahoma Conference has a tiered schedule with meetings in May, June and November.
- Indiana Conference will be held on two Saturdays: Aug. 15 at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Ind., and Oct. 10 at St. Luke’s UMC in Indianapolis. Different information will be given at both sessions, so members must attend both locations. Special health precautions will be taken.
- South Georgia has postponed its June 7-9 conference session Aug. 14-15 at the UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center in Tifton, Ga.
- Memphis Conference has been rescheduled to Friday & Saturday, Sept. 25-26 at Germantown United Methodist Church
- Western North Carolina Conference has rescheduled to a one-day session on the afternoon of Saturday, August 8 at Lake Junaluska.
- Baltimore-Washington Conference has postponed its 2020 session to sometime between September and November.
- Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference 2020 will be October 13-14
- New England Conference still has its 2020 session scheduled for Thursday, June 11, 2020 to Saturday, June 13, 2020. However, it also has a prominent notice urging website visitors to keep watch for updated information.
Like much else in this new, unsettling coronavirus world, we may not know what’s going on until it’s almost upon us. Patience and vigilance are the watchwords.
Coronavirus future shock
Church leaders who are keeping track of coronavirus research for future planning should read Donald G. McNeil Jr.’s weekend article in the New York Times, “The Coronavirus in America: The Year Ahead.” Mr. McNeil interviewed some 20 public health and economic experts in depth about America’s future. Here is an excerpt:
“No one knows exactly what percentage of Americans have been infected so far — estimates have ranged from 3 percent to 10 percent — but it is likely a safe bet that at least 300 million of us are still vulnerable.
“Until a vaccine or another protective measure emerges, there is no scenario, epidemiologists agreed, in which it is safe for that many people to suddenly come out of hiding. If Americans pour back out in force, all will appear quiet for perhaps three weeks.
“Then the emergency rooms will get busy again.”
Guidelines for lifting lockdowns
Still looking at the church’s future planning, here are the World Health Organization’s six guidelines for lifting coronavirus lockdowns.
1. Disease transmission is under control.
2. Health systems are able to "detect, test, isolate and treat every case and trace every contact."
3. Hot spot risks are minimized in vulnerable places, such as nursing homes.
4. Schools, workplaces and other essential places have established preventive measures.
5. The risk of importing new cases "can be managed."
6. Communities are fully educated, engaged and empowered to live under a new normal.
The WHO guidelines may seem to set the bar high, but the alternative to these measures is the death of thousands more people. As of this writing, the United States leads the world in COVID-19 cases and deaths from coronavirus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 746,625 total cases and 39,083 total deaths. Globally the WHO reports 2,314,621 confirmed cases and 157,847 deaths as of April 20. COVID-19 is now arguably the leading cause of death in the United States. What’s more, many public health experts believe these numbers are substantially higher because of underreporting caused by lack of sufficient testing.
In short, friends, don’t be fooled by urgent pleas and political demonstrations to re-open America. We’re nowhere near ready to do that, God knows. We need some other, more creative ways to deal with the social and economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. What could your church do?
Be there for others
Even as the worldwide denomination struggles to discern an uncertain future, the United Methodist Committee on Relief still looks to aid the most vulnerable. Here’s its latest word from Global Ministries’ “Engage” newsletter:
“Since the start of the coronavirus outbreak, UMCOR has been working with health boards, medical professionals, disaster management coordinators and faith leaders to prevent the further spread of COVID-19. Now it is clear that the impact of COVID-19 will be far-reaching and demands an even greater response.
“The UMCOR COVID-19 Response fund will support vulnerable populations disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus in the U.S. and around the world. Grants from this fund will be disbursed quickly and efficiently, allowing Methodist partners to address health concerns, food insecurity, water and hygiene limitations and other pressing needs in their communities.
“Even as you shelter in place, you can be there for others.” Click here to give.
Media Mentions as of April 17, 2020
Kansas City Is Seeing A Surge In African American Coronavirus Diagnoses – Black Enterprise
Federal judge blocks Kansas limits on religious gatherings – ABC News
Faith leaders help congregations cope during pandemic – Longview News-Journal
Church leaders urge African Americans to stay healthy, survive – United Methodist News Service
Covid-19 has killed multiple bishops and pastors within the nation's largest black Pentecostal denomination – Washington Post
Some California churches call in-person services essential despite pandemic – Religion News Service
A virus that hits all faiths tests religion’s tie to science – The Associated Press
Four family members infected after a bishop dies of coronavirus in Virginia – CNN
Questions mount over Christian group behind Central Park Covid-19 hospital – The Guardian
Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011. Share your coronavirus stories with Insight.