Enduring the Coronavirus Pandemic

Crisis Watch Nov. 10, 2020

by

A United Methodist Insight Column

Coronavirus blues still afflict United Methodists throughout the global denomination. We want fervently to gather again in community, to celebrate Holy Communion, sing our favorite hymns and embrace one another in Christian love. And the coronavirus continues to keep us from what has been the heart of the Christian experience.

The scope of the pandemic is stunning. On Nov. 4, the United States notched  more than 100,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases — the first time any country topped that daily rate, according to The Atlantic magazine. On Nov. 8, the United States marked its 10-millionth coronavirus positive case, according to the New York Times.

In her latest COVID-19 update Nov. 10, Bishop Elaine J.W. Stanovsky writes of the painful reality still facing us:

“Cases of COVID-19 are on the rise across America in what one public health doctor called a ‘raging firestorm.’ The highest number of daily new cases of COVID-19 since March occurred yesterday in Alaska. Idaho, Oregon and Washington have been rising since September 8. This is not the time to let down our guard against this highly contagious, deadly disease.

“… Although states have not always held religious organizations to the same gathering restrictions as other organizations, I have held United Methodists in the Greater Northwest Area to strict limits. For most of our churches, this is not the time to loosen these restrictions. Most churches have moved successfully to holding worship and other activities online, either live streamed, or pre-produced. If I were a pastor of a local church today, I would not move toward more and larger in-person gatherings at this time and I do not encourage our churches to do so.”

Bishop Stanovsky summarized the current state of the pandemic: “Since February, science has learned and taught us about how the virus spreads and how to limit its spread by wearing masks, keeping 6 feet apart, limiting the length of time of gatherings, and washing hands and using hand sanitizer. … Just today we heard hope that an effective vaccination may be available by the end of the year.”

She referred to an announcement described recently for The Conversation by William Petri, Professor of Medicine at the University of Virginia and a specialist in infectious diseases:

“A sparse press release issued Nov. 9 by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer suggests that the end is in sight, with preliminary results indicating that its vaccine is 90% effective at preventing symptomatic COVID-19. The company said it intends this month to seek emergency use authorization, or EUA, from the FDA, bringing some encouraging news to the fight against the pandemic.

“The Pfizer vaccine is based on a new technology in which a molecule called messenger RNA is injected into the body. This mRNA molecule provides the instructions for cells in the body to manufacture a protein, called the spike glycoprotein, that plays an essential role in allowing the SARS-CoV-2 to infect human cells. When the immune system detects the spike glycoprotein, it generates an immune response. If the vaccinated individual is later exposed to the virus that causes COVID-19, the individual’s immune system is prepared to rapidly attack and destroy the coronavirus.”

Until that vaccine is produced and used successfully, Bishop Stanovsky and other church leaders urge continuing precautions despite the difficulty of enduring the pandemic.

“The longer we live with restrictions on our freedom of movement and gathering, the higher the risk of mental, psychological and spiritual suffering,” she writes.

“Churches seek to balance the harm caused by continued spread of the virus and the harm done by continuing to restrict in-person gatherings for worship, prayer, fellowship and study. How do we weigh the risk of COVID-19 spread and deaths against the risk of loneliness, depression, despair, substance abuse, domestic violence and suicide as the months wear on, the days grow short and dark and the weather pushes us indoors? No gatherings are risk-free, but as we strive to balance competing harms, some gatherings with strict safety practices under certain conditions may be prudent,” the bishop writes.

 In the Greater Northwest Area, new guidelines will permit in-person gatherings of up to 25 persons with physical distancing and face masks. Churches and ministries are using data from www.CovidActNow.org to determine their county’s risk level. Aside from practicalities, however, Bishop Stanovsky also acknowledged the depth of the challenge before the church:

“As we reenter life together, we must allow for our dream or memory of community to fade to make room for love to emerge in new and different ways. The task we have is to reimagine church – and all we are and do – so that we can be what God dreams us to be. After all, church isn’t a building; it isn’t doors or a steeple. Church is the people in ministry and service. If we can’t do this ministry in the ways we have in the past, we will find new ways to do it. We will find a way. Our imaginations can show us what is possible.”

How is your church or annual conference coping with coronavirus pandemic restrictions? Send your stories to United Methodist Insight.

Keeping count on the crises

From The Guardian, weekly counts on climate-changing carbon dioxide:

From the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center

Global COVID-19 Deaths 1,263,089; U. S. deaths 238,251

Media Mentions as of Nov. 10, 2020

LA megachurch pastor mocks pandemic health orders, even as church members fall ill – Los Angeles Times *

Soul of the nation: How Joe Biden’s faith will shape his presidency – The Guardian

Christian churches mirror country's political division – ABC News

Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011.