Almost as soon as the COVID-19 pandemic began, a tug of war developed between federal, state and local policymakers and a small group of sometimes angry Christian pastors bent on holding in-person services. Meet the pastors who have refused to close.
Last year Bradfordville FBC hosted about 300 boys and girls for VBS in Tallahassee, Florida. This year, alongside 20 local partnering congregations spanning multiple denominations, they could reach thousands.
As Gov. Gavin Newsom prepares to release plans for how religious institutions can reopen in California during the coronavirus pandemic, health officials announced that two church services that were held without authorization have been sources of outbreaks.
For the first time in two months, there was clapping, singing, and fellowship inside Stithton Baptist Church in Radcliff, Kentucky, as members of the congregation returned to the sanctuary for Sunday morning services on May 24. There also were masks, hand sanitizer, and social distancing.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Saturday scrapped his 10-person limit on group gatherings and agreed to allow churches to open at 25% occupancy if certain safety guidelines are met. Walz announced the decision on the day when the state reported a record number of COVID-19 cases.
As the coronavirus pandemic grows in the eastern European nation of Belarus, Baptists there are experiencing an outbreak in their eldercare home. Belarusian Baptist churches and the Baptist seminary have also struggled to keep ministering in these uncertain times.
President Donald Trump said Friday (May 22) that he has deemed churches and other houses of worship “essential" and called on governors across the country to allow them to reopen this weekend, even as some parts of the nation remain under coronavirus lockdown.
Massachusetts to reopen houses of worship as the country battles the spread of the coronavirus, Gov. Charlie Baker said Thursday (May 21). They have been allowed to restart services this week as long as they practice social distancing.
New York will allow small religious gatherings starting Thursday as the state gradually loosens pandemic restrictions, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. Religious gatherings of up to 10 people will be allowed statewide as long as participants wear masks and practice social distancing.
With the coronavirus pandemic canceling mass gatherings across the country, college and seminary graduates found their climatic moment in front of their friends and families suddenly upended. Like church services over the past couple months, many of these ceremonies moved to a virtual format.