Estonian Baptists Hopeful as Coronavirus Restrictions Ease
Baptists in Estonia held in-person worship services on Sunday (May 10) for the first time in two months. But even as coronavirus restrictions in Baltic nation start to ease, Baptists there continue to adapt their ministry to reach their secular nation in these unusual times.
US Choir Outbreak Called ‘Superspreader Event’ in Report
Disease trackers are calling a choir practice in Washington state a superspreader event that illustrates how easily the coronavirus can pass from person to person. The act of singing itself may have spread the virus in the air and onto surfaces, according to a report from Skagit County Public Health published Tuesday (May 12).
Poll: US Believers See Message of Change From God in Virus
The coronavirus has prompted almost two-thirds of American believers to feel that God is telling humanity to change how it lives, a new poll finds.
Baptist Churches Sue to Block N.C. Governor Order
Conservative Christian leaders sued North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper on Thursday (May 14), asking a court to throw out his restrictions on indoor religious services in the state during the COVID-19 pandemic. They argued the limits, initiated by Cooper with health in mind, violate their rights to worship freely.
Rev. Barber’s Poor People’s Campaign Calls for Resistance to Reopening Plans
The Poor People’s Campaign, a grassroots group with branches in more than 40 states, is urging resistance to or noncooperation with state plans calling for the reopening of the economy just weeks after the coronavirus put most of the country on lockdown.
Government of Nicaragua ‘Irresponsible’ in Handling the Pandemic, Bishop Says
In Nicaragua, already faced with high poverty rates and civil unrest, the government is failing to properly address the coronavirus pandemic, according to one Catholic bishop.
Survey Shows Faith Can Prosper in Online Services
A Pew Research Center survey conducted April 20-26 found members who have gone online report a larger growth in faith than those whose services have not moved to online streaming.
Judge Rejects Churches’ Challenge to Ill. Stay-at-Home Order
A federal judge on Wednesday rejected a challenge to Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s authority to impose stay-at-home orders on churches in the battle against the coronavirus. A Baptist church was among those suing.
First Mo. Coronavirus Church Lawsuit Dismissed
A federal judge on Monday (May 11) dismissed a legal challenge by a group of Catholics in St. Louis, while a similar challenge in Kansas City by a Baptist church is moving toward a hearing on Friday. Both suits challenge local restrictions designed to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the two hardest-hit regions of Missouri.
Christian Leaders Push to Reopen Early in Southern California
Some Southern California pastors agree with Gov. Gavin Newsom it’s time to start opening up their state — including its churches — after weeks of being shut down to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. They disagree, however, on how fast that should happen.