Why I Am Not in a Hurry to Reopen My Church
I am hearing from a number of pastors who are very eager to reopen their churches. Some are already allowed and some whose governments are not allowing it are petitioning to be able to reopen as soon as possible.
But I am not in a hurry to reopen my church.
It is not that I am happy with online only services. I wish we could have regular services, with real people and live singing. But I don’t think that is wise right now.
For some pastors, this is an issue of rights. We have the freedom of religious expression and the government needs to give back our rights. I don’t see it that way. Call me naive but I actually believe that governments are trying to keep us safe.
Plus I don’t think that the government is targeting churches. If they were, we wouldn’t be allowed to do online services and the bars and casinos would be open.
The reason that I am not in a hurry to reopen is that I want to err on the side of caution. If I was to be criticized on my handling of the pandemic, I would prefer people say that I waited too long than I opened the church too early.
My job is to teach the Bible and love my people. I can teach the Bible online and right now, the best way I can love my people is to keep them safe.
Even when we reopen the church, it won’t be the way we want it. There will be restrictions that make people uncomfortable. I’m okay with that.
I don’t want to be the pastor that says, “I wish I had just waited a little longer.”
I agree with you Stephen.
It’s a poor witness to be insisting on opening churches too soon – it shows a lack of care for our neighbours.
Plus, I think can think of other hills I’d rather die on 🙂