On Wednesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who had refused to close the state’s beaches to spring break revelers, finally issued a stay-at-home order. It exempts people who must venture outside to “obtain or provide essential services or conduct essential activities.” High on his list of essential activities: “attending religious services conducted in churches, synagogues and houses of worship.”
Most of the nation’s clergy do not see packing pews as defensible, much less essential, during this pandemic. Most have shifted to virtual worship, so their members don’t transmit or contract a disease that can kill. The faithful can also find spiritual sustenance in prayer, Bible reading or helping those in need. Continue reading.