There is a scene in Mathew Lopez's The Whipping Man, where freed slaves, in the ruins of their former master's home, make a seder in April of 1865. The slaves, converted to Judaism by the family, used hardtack for Matza and a horse bone for the shank. These substitutions, while not kosher, express the essence of the ritual and thus what truly is important in expressing ones faith. There intention was not to destroy that ritual but to celebrate the ancient freedom of the Israelites and the newly found freedom they now enjoyed as the Civil War had ended and slavery abolished.
Today, the entire world is faced with a danger that is hard to track down and avoid. We find ourselves in the midst of a pandemic that requires us to remain in physical distance from others and not gather in groups. This as we too celebrate Passover and the Christian community celebrates Holy Week and Easter. Over the last several weeks houses of worship have had to modify how they minister to their congregations. For Jews, a minyan of 10 adults is the standard to do a full service and over the centuries those people must all be in the same space. Not so long ago the idea of a virtual minyan was considered a horror by many in the Jewish world, but for the last month it has not only been the standard but has elevated people's connection to their faith in many occasions. Virtual seders have been the norm and we have been invited to come to several. Faced with the threat this virus we are living with can bring upon us we forgo the normal and create a new way to meet the intention.
For Christians they too have modified their approach to this time. Catholics have as part of their tradition an obligation to attend church on every Sunday and on many days during the year. Yet Catholic Church pews were empty today as worshipers sat at their kitchen tables or comfortable chairs and prayed along with their priest on a computer screen. Protestant churches did the same. Except for a few outliers.
There is a growing voice led by some on the political right who are using religion as a cudgel to attack Stay-at-Home orders arguing that it is unconstitutional. Some have even violated the orders and called their congregations together in services. One such pastor who called Covid-19 a hoax and not dangerous has already died due to complications of the infection. But more are pushing forward and this morning there were several services held with crowds. I don't understand and I am not sure someone can explain it to me to the point where I will. In Judaism one can violate almost any religious law if the results may save a life. I am not sure about Christianity, but I am sure that that Christians I know believe that putting one's life in danger unnecessarily is an affront to God.
I find it a little odd that there is an attempt to argue that the closing of houses of worship is a violation of the Constitution. Every right outlined in the Bill of Rights has limits. Since the early days of the republic, the rights laid out there were subject to interpretation. The main argument is that government can't interfere in religious practice. But the courts have ruled they can, banning polygamy as far back as the 19th century is a prime example. Here in Indiana some of the same people who are calling out our governor for his stay-at-home order because they think he can't close churches were opposed when a local man started the Church of Cannabis, where smoking pot is considered sacramental. If the state is allowed to stop adults from choosing to engage in a behavior that harms no one but themselves in a religious context, then they are clearly able to close churches for the sake of the entire population. But I would argue religion is not the issue here.
For weeks, the President has been more worried about the stay-at-home orders around the country hurting the economy. As jobless claims rise, as stimulus leads to debt and the realignment of the entire world economic picture is taking place he is saying he wants the country to open up again. The problem is that he doesn't have the power to do it. He could order federal workers back to their jobs but he can't tell a governor to lift order. I think many of the people arguing for the churches to open up have no intention of attending, they just want to force state officials to end our confinement in order to help the President get what he wants. There are enough people whose views of the virus are skewed by the misinformation on some networks and even from the White House that some churches will have full houses. Last week, when asked if she cared about the virus as she exited a church service one woman said she wasn't because she was "washed in the blood of Jesus" but also that she thinks it is a media hype and not as serious. Most health officials think that if we went back to normal daily routines it could be devastating to population. One thing we are seeing in New York, California, and parts of the Midwest is that physical distancing is working. We are flattening the curve, while we may still see a large number of cases the time it takes to reach those numbers will be longer. That way our health system is not overwhelmed and over time we will find a workable treatment and eventually a vaccine. When I hear people suggest things like it is okay for older people to die to save the economy or that we are over doing it because those that die were already on their last legs I am not sure how to react. In both of those cases, the first the Lt. Governor of Texas Dan Patrick and the second disgraced former Fox News host Bill O'Reilly claim a pro-life stance. To me that is Pro-death if I ever heard it.
So as we sit in a virtual pew on Facebook live, raise a kiddush cup on a Ipad screen and pray the rosary in a ZOOM chat we are still doing God's work and performing the highest of our religious tasks as human beings, saving God's creatures. We will see a new way to form our religious communities when this is over. Perhaps we will find that more people connect more strongly, both online and in real life moving forward. I don't know, what I do know is that if we stay home, connect using the gift of technology and the power of family we can save lives. That is the greatest prayer we can offer.
Today, the entire world is faced with a danger that is hard to track down and avoid. We find ourselves in the midst of a pandemic that requires us to remain in physical distance from others and not gather in groups. This as we too celebrate Passover and the Christian community celebrates Holy Week and Easter. Over the last several weeks houses of worship have had to modify how they minister to their congregations. For Jews, a minyan of 10 adults is the standard to do a full service and over the centuries those people must all be in the same space. Not so long ago the idea of a virtual minyan was considered a horror by many in the Jewish world, but for the last month it has not only been the standard but has elevated people's connection to their faith in many occasions. Virtual seders have been the norm and we have been invited to come to several. Faced with the threat this virus we are living with can bring upon us we forgo the normal and create a new way to meet the intention.
For Christians they too have modified their approach to this time. Catholics have as part of their tradition an obligation to attend church on every Sunday and on many days during the year. Yet Catholic Church pews were empty today as worshipers sat at their kitchen tables or comfortable chairs and prayed along with their priest on a computer screen. Protestant churches did the same. Except for a few outliers.
There is a growing voice led by some on the political right who are using religion as a cudgel to attack Stay-at-Home orders arguing that it is unconstitutional. Some have even violated the orders and called their congregations together in services. One such pastor who called Covid-19 a hoax and not dangerous has already died due to complications of the infection. But more are pushing forward and this morning there were several services held with crowds. I don't understand and I am not sure someone can explain it to me to the point where I will. In Judaism one can violate almost any religious law if the results may save a life. I am not sure about Christianity, but I am sure that that Christians I know believe that putting one's life in danger unnecessarily is an affront to God.
I find it a little odd that there is an attempt to argue that the closing of houses of worship is a violation of the Constitution. Every right outlined in the Bill of Rights has limits. Since the early days of the republic, the rights laid out there were subject to interpretation. The main argument is that government can't interfere in religious practice. But the courts have ruled they can, banning polygamy as far back as the 19th century is a prime example. Here in Indiana some of the same people who are calling out our governor for his stay-at-home order because they think he can't close churches were opposed when a local man started the Church of Cannabis, where smoking pot is considered sacramental. If the state is allowed to stop adults from choosing to engage in a behavior that harms no one but themselves in a religious context, then they are clearly able to close churches for the sake of the entire population. But I would argue religion is not the issue here.
For weeks, the President has been more worried about the stay-at-home orders around the country hurting the economy. As jobless claims rise, as stimulus leads to debt and the realignment of the entire world economic picture is taking place he is saying he wants the country to open up again. The problem is that he doesn't have the power to do it. He could order federal workers back to their jobs but he can't tell a governor to lift order. I think many of the people arguing for the churches to open up have no intention of attending, they just want to force state officials to end our confinement in order to help the President get what he wants. There are enough people whose views of the virus are skewed by the misinformation on some networks and even from the White House that some churches will have full houses. Last week, when asked if she cared about the virus as she exited a church service one woman said she wasn't because she was "washed in the blood of Jesus" but also that she thinks it is a media hype and not as serious. Most health officials think that if we went back to normal daily routines it could be devastating to population. One thing we are seeing in New York, California, and parts of the Midwest is that physical distancing is working. We are flattening the curve, while we may still see a large number of cases the time it takes to reach those numbers will be longer. That way our health system is not overwhelmed and over time we will find a workable treatment and eventually a vaccine. When I hear people suggest things like it is okay for older people to die to save the economy or that we are over doing it because those that die were already on their last legs I am not sure how to react. In both of those cases, the first the Lt. Governor of Texas Dan Patrick and the second disgraced former Fox News host Bill O'Reilly claim a pro-life stance. To me that is Pro-death if I ever heard it.
So as we sit in a virtual pew on Facebook live, raise a kiddush cup on a Ipad screen and pray the rosary in a ZOOM chat we are still doing God's work and performing the highest of our religious tasks as human beings, saving God's creatures. We will see a new way to form our religious communities when this is over. Perhaps we will find that more people connect more strongly, both online and in real life moving forward. I don't know, what I do know is that if we stay home, connect using the gift of technology and the power of family we can save lives. That is the greatest prayer we can offer.
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