{"id":1046,"date":"2020-11-12T12:48:16","date_gmt":"2020-11-12T12:48:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.greatadventure.carterclan.me.uk\/?p=1046"},"modified":"2020-11-12T14:19:02","modified_gmt":"2020-11-12T14:19:02","slug":"covid-worship-entitlement-and-freedom-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/greatadventure.carterclan.me.uk\/?p=1046","title":{"rendered":"Covid, worship, entitlement and freedom…"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

One of the most difficult things about this pandemic has been the sheer magnitude of extremely polarised opinions, exposing, sadly, a lack of humanity and empathy from all sides at times. The hopeful #bekind campaign of early spring seemed often forgotten through months of unrest, with ageism and ableism all too evident in general discourse about the whole thing (see my post here for more on that \u2013 a Pandemic and its Scourge.)<\/a> Yet, alongside that we saw the best of humanity: the self-sacrifice, the kindness to others, the care for communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today I am angry. It\u2019s an anger tempered with a great sadness but also with great tinges of hope. Anger can actually be okay, it can be vital when confronting injustice – but it must be balanced with grace and compassion, even when we disagree. Jesus\u2019 displayed righteous anger in his rage at the traders in the temple, who were desecrating the house of God in their eagerness to make money and claim their rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I believe that the house of God is being desecrated in our world today, with a creeping sense of entitlement becoming more obvious. It\u2019s become stark to me today reading of this stateside campaign to stage \u2018protest worship\u2019 concerts of thousands of people all together.<\/a> If Black Lives Matter protests are permitted to gather, the justification goes, then Christians should be permitted to gather in worship as a protest against the increasing control it is perceived the state is imposing upon them in its closing of churches and worship centres. Their right to worship is more important, because of the danger of shutting down expressions of faith and the precedent this could set. It is my feeling that this co-opting of a protest against endemic racism (and a protest at which most wore masks, and when Covid numbers were in general much lower through the summer months), is surely a dangerous corruption of what it means to support the oppressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I watched part of the YouTube recording of one of these concerts. <\/a>No one was social distancing. No one was wearing masks. Thousands crammed together, singing loudly. The comments jarred with me a little: \u2018It\u2019s so wonderful to see thousands together in person worshipping during a pandemic!\u2019 (I love seeing thousands worship together, but when it is possible that causes great harm to others it doesn’t seem wonderful.) \u2018God is so anointing this!\u2019 (I’d hope that I could be open to God working even when we mess up, so I am sure that for some it would have been a place of encounter.) To me, this is a temple of self, a gathering of great entitlement, a flouting not only of Covid rules but of Paul\u2019s entreaty to \u2018die to self\u2019 (Galatians 2:20) and Christ\u2019s own words about self-denial (Luke 9:23). It seems to me that these protests go sadly and seriously in the face of Jesus\u2019 teaching about love for one\u2019s neighbour and biblical emphasis of the care for those who are oppressed and marginalised (including the sick and vulnerable.) By gathering together so closely in these times and very probably expelling virus, they are in truth endangering lives and livelihoods. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In great contrast, I watched Paul Harcourt speaking on this video today about why New Wine have made the decision to cancel next year\u2019s United conference. Paul speaks with wisdom, empathy and compassion, modelling a holy response to an intolerable situation and talking creatively of ways in which New Wine will still unite people to worship together through the next months and year. Do watch the video here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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