Need to know: Friday, March 20, 2020
Houses of worship pitch in to help those left vulnerable by virus outbreak
City Road Chapel near Nashville, Tennessee announced a Bar and Restaurant Workers Help Fund this week, one of many faith groups assisting food-service workers impacted by the coronavirus outbreak.
James MacDonald returns to pulpit for first time since ouster from Harvest Bible Chapel
MacDonald is set to preach Sunday (March 22) at Calvary Chapel South Bay in Gardena, California — albeit via livestream as many churches across the country have moved their services online to slow the spread of COVID-19, or the coronavirus.
Politics — not faith — can drive coronavirus response
When responding to the coronavirus, Americans seem to rely on politics more than faith.
Christmas in March? Some people are turning on their lights to brighten a dark time
People across the country have had the same idea to turn on the Christmas lights still frozen to their rooftops or to pull their decor back out of storage to bring some light to a dark time.
Candidates should know that evangelicals are looking for nuanced debate on immigration
A rich dialogue is developing among conservative evangelical women about how to best help families seeking refuge in America, writes Briana Stensrud.
The church that won’t close its doors over the coronavirus
Life Tabernacle Church was visited by officers from the local Central Police Department Tuesday night, when more than 300 people were worshiping.
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Pope Francis and Italian bishops call Italians to recite the rosary to end the pandemic
VATICAN CITY (RNS) — Italian Catholic bishops have called for a public recitation of the rosary and prayers for health care workers.
In this Episcopal church, the co-leader of the Lenten study is a rabbi
(RNS) — Rabbi Raachel Jurovics is now rabbi-in-residence at the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina — one of a handful of such posts in Episcopal dioceses.
Congregations improvise ways to fight COVID-19’s isolation
Most of the 100 people filling the pews at Calvary Lutheran Church of Federal Way fit the description of those at high risk for COVID-19, making social distancing a pastoral problem.
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How do we weigh a floral designer’s dignity and freedom against state coercion?
A compassionate response to differences in our beliefs is what our society needs, not government officials more interested in shaming those with whom they disagree, writes Kristen Waggoner.
While we make the best of a pandemic, coronavirus is making the best of us
(RNS) — The past few weeks have put the lie to our illusions of self-sufficiency. We have always been responsible to one another for everything. We’re just noticing it now.
There are things the Black Death can teach us today
Historians tend to take seriously the contention that Jewish communities were less affected by the plague itself, if not from the hatred it unleashed, because of their ritual hand-washing, writes Avi Shafran.
