(RNS) — The FBI released a warning last week about a potential surge in hate crimes against Asian Americans amid the spread of the novel coronavirus. Michelle Ami Reyes was not surprised. Reyes told Religion News Service that she knows people from her church in Austin, Texas, who have been spit on. She also knows people who have been chased down the street to shouts of “coronavirus.” “A lot of what ministry on the ground lately has looked like is caring for people who are experiencing racism and the grief and the pain and the trauma that comes from that,” said Reyes, who planted Hope Community Church in Austin with her husband. Reyes, who is Indian American, said she’s experienced that kind of racism herself. Jeff M. Liou has experienced it, too. Liou, national director of theological formation for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, said racist graffiti recently was painted near the church he attends. “We know it’s affecting the people that we care about, and … [Read more...]

(RNS) — This isn’t the April we wanted. We wanted spring training. We wanted to go to church on Easter Sunday. We wanted a weekend trip to see the spring flowers. We wanted the Masters golf tournament. I love the Masters. I don’t just like it, I love it! I keep pictures of Amen Corner on my computer screen. I love April. But this April? This isn’t the April we wanted. But this is the April we’ve been handed: daily reports of disease and death. An economy that’s in freefall. Dwindling supplies. Another 30 days of distance and isolation. And, most of all, a month of fear. We fear for our family. We fear for the health of our health workers. We fear this microscopic, COVID-19 culprit that stalks our streets like a thief. So we need to brace ourselves. Adjust our expectations. April as we wanted will not happen. God willing, it will reappear in 2021. But the 2020 version? It’s time for a deep breath, a steady resolve and a few decisions. I’m thinking of three essential, … [Read more...]

(RNS) — For reasons I don't need to explain, my family and I recently watched the 2011 movie "Contagion" together. In times like these we look for comparable situations. Everyone seems to be rediscovering the influenza pandemic that brought the world to its knees a century ago, shocked to find that every scourge like this shows a lot about our leaders and what they think will serve them best. The first viral outbreak in U.S. history, however, comes much earlier, a few years after the Constitution was ratified, when Philadelphia faced an epidemic that killed 10% of the city. In those days, a small group of black Methodists displayed an unusual selflessness and dedication that revealed the heroism and frailties of a young nation. The year was 1793. Philadelphia was a thriving, bustling city, filled with immigrants recently arrived from seemingly everywhere. Suddenly, all of Philadelphia was abuzz with word that yellow fever was spreading. The city's residents were accustomed … [Read more...]

(RNS) — Giving is down, attendance is up and a good number of pastors still aren’t sure what they’re going to do about Easter. Those are some of the big takeaways in a new Barna survey of Protestant pastors from across the United States about their churches’ responses to the current coronavirus pandemic. “The crisis is starting to take its toll” on church leaders as it becomes clear the measures needed to slow the spread of the virus will stretch on much longer than first thought, according to David Kinnaman, president of the California-based Christian research firm. Barna surveyed 434 senior and executive pastors online using its Barna Church Pulse tool, starting one week after President Trump declared a national emergency related to the pandemic; 222 pastors responded between March 20 and 23, and another 212 between March 27 and 30. Over that week, pastors were less likely to say the pandemic had affected the overall well-being of the people in their churches only “a … [Read more...]

(RNS) — The coronavirus pandemic has quickly swept the globe, throwing just about every human institution into chaos. Faith communities are no exception. With gatherings restricted in size or prohibited altogether, many houses of worship are fighting to stay connected, rapidly weighing technological options to keep as many people as possible engaged. This involves a a good deal of trial and error. Congregational leaders find themselves relying on multiple digital tools — some of which they have never used before — to connect themselves to their members and to keep their members caring for each other. As stressful as these times are, they have provided an extraordinary opportunity in my Christian community to reflect on our identity and mission as the church, and to imagine ways of being more connected than ever with our fellow church members. In normal times, most churches plow forward without much reflection on identity and mission. Now they have the chance to do … [Read more...]

(RNS) — The Rev. Megan Castellan has been livestreaming morning prayer from home every day through the coronavirus pandemic for her parishioners at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Ithaca, New York. But Thursday’s prayer (March 26) was an “epic disaster,” Castellan told her followers on Twitter. Both the rector’s dog and cat decided to participate in the Facebook Live video, hovering over her shoulders on the couch. Offscreen, her husband, forgetting Castellan was on camera, made a loud phone call, then motioned to her that he was going to go get tested for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Castellan, also briefly forgetting she was on camera, responded by miming sticking a swab up her nose, part of the testing process. Then a “mysterious loud noise” sent her dog leaping off the couch to investigate, returning in time to lick the rector’s hand enthusiastically through the final prayer. Castellan briefly considered recording the video over again, she told … [Read more...]