Save a Life, Watch Church Online!

I’ve said before that not all laws are beneficial all the time. In other words, what is a good law for the present moment might simply not fit in another. We are in an unprecedented time, thus this theory is exceedingly relevant. We have commonly disputed the issue of church and state and religious freedoms. As covid cases increase, this dispute leads to the concern of worship services as a source of the spread of the virus. The concern is that those who choose to attend worship services are putting those who choose not to at a greater risk. People’s actions are creating negative consequences for those who choose to stay at home for their safety and others’, hence creating a demand for change.

Due to present circumstances, there should be a law that prohibits people from attending a worship service during this time. This has not been done yet, but Arkansas has recently released new guidelines regarding the virus and wearing a mask when attending church. These guidelines should become enforced rules, so there might be no imposition of negative consequences for those who did not commit these actions. The government should be transforming these guidelines into mandated statute.

The state should enforce the majority interest of those who are governed. In other words, if the majority of people in a state do not agree with a statute, it should not be enforced. Most of the time. However, in consideration of a circumstance such as a pandemic, we must consider the threat people’s actions impose on others. When hundreds of people attend church, they can unknowingly expose other people who then return back to neighbors, friends, and relatives, who opted out of church to stay safe but are now threatened with sickness or death due to someone else’s actions. Thus the threat of bearing the consequence for someone else’s decisions should hold a higher importance.

An additional point to consider is the relativity of these regulations. In another circumstance it would not deem appropriate to tell the governed when and when not to worship. Freedom of religion is a liberty that should be upheld. Hence, we must consider the circumstances. Statutes relevant to church must remain within the concern of safety of others during this pandemic. As we hope for the virus to subside, we must acknowledge the demands we must currently make for church attendees cannot be the same outside of this pandemic.