Coronavirus solidarity
The General Board of Church and Society expresses its support for social distancing and sheltering at home via its marquee at the United Methodist Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. (Church and Society Photo)
A United Methodist Insight Column
Two advocacy organizations of United Methodists will mark May 5 – the scheduled opening date of the now-postponed General Conference 2020 – with online observances.
Town Hall Grace
Mainstream UMC plans a virtual “town hall” session, “A Call for Grace” at 2 p.m. Central Time on May 5 via You Tube. No registration or online conferencing account is required; some 125 people have indicated their interest via the Facebook announcement. To attend, click on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEluRTqrwzM. The event also will be accessible via www.MainstreamUMC.com
Mainstream UMC’s executive director, the Rev. Dr. Mark Holland, writes, “The Town Hall will:
- Offer prayers for those most impacted by the global pandemic
- Give a brief background of where we are as a church
- Issue a Call for Grace in the UMC
- Answer as many questions of yours as we can.
At least one person, Mark Tooley, president of the Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD), has pushed back against the idea of “grace” in current UMC relationships in an article via Religion News Service: The formal United Methodist schism is delayed. We can start sooner
RMN worship 5/5
Reconciling Ministries Network will hold a virtual worship service “to celebrate the strength of the Reconciling movement” via a Facebook Watch Party starting at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. Pacific time on May 5. Thus far more than 150 viewers have signed up for the event, with some 250 more indicating interest in attending. The service uses the theme, “Be Still and Know,” a paraphrase of what was to be the theme for General Conference 2020: “Know I am God.”
‘Crossroads of Faith and Science’ video
Amid the plethora of online meetings scheduled for Thursday, April 30, we overlooked the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry’s offering, “Coronavirus at the Crossroads of Faith and Science” held at noon Thursday, April 30. The event is GBHEM E-Resources’ first live panel discussion featuring the Rev. Greg Bergquist, the board’s top executive, along with Dr. James E.K. Hildreth, president of Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tenn., and one the foremost U.S. experts on infectious diseases; and Professor Randy L. Maddox, William Kellon Quick Professor of Wesleyan and Methodist Studies at Duke Divinity School and a globally renowned theologian and Wesleyan scholar. Watch it on the GBHEM YouTube Channel.
With so many resources presented online, I’d would love to get reactions and reviews of their content and presentation. Send your thoughts about online discussions and webinars to United Methodist Insight.
Another ministry opportunity
National Public Radio reports that a record 30 million people have applied for unemployment benefits as of this week (see A Staggering Toll: 30 Million Have Filed For Unemployment). If ever there was a clear and present opportunity for the church to be in ministry, it’s this period in U.S. national life. Look around your community and see specifically what the unemployed – which includes both church members and neighbors – need from your congregation now.
About those extended church closures
If you or your congregation are chafing at your bishop’s extension of closing churches through May, take heart from this note from The Interpreter newsletter of the New York Times:
“ … a new study on the 1918 Spanish influenza epidemic finds that lockdowns, quarantines and school closings initially appeared to work at suppressing the virus, but were followed by new rounds of infection so drastic that it was as if those lockdowns never took place. The author Robert J. Barro, a Harvard University economist, concludes that this was because those lockdown measures were too brief, held in place only long enough for deaths to appear to decline.”
In a similar vein, Iowa Bishop Laurie Haller is among the signers of an interfaith statement urging Iowans to continue to avoid religious gatherings despite their governor’s permission to hold worship. Religious leaders in other “opening” states such as Texas have followed suit. Says the statement from the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa:
“For the sake of the common good, we ask all congregations, their leaders, and their members to prioritize the safety and well being of each other, those at particular risk, and those in their broader community. Please love one another and your neighbor by continuing to be in community together from afar.”
So continue to stay home, stay safe, wash your hands. Pray, and keep praying.
Media Mentions as of April 30, 2020
Southern Baptist publishing arm, LifeWay, announces cuts due to COVID-19 – Religion News Service
Pastors wait, hope to resume services soon – Opelika Auburn News
Wesley Woods cancels camps – Marion County Tribune
Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011.