I’m told that some churches are dividing their congregations into ‘have’ and ‘have-nots.’ Pastors tell their flock something along this line: “You can worship with us without a mask if you have been vaccinated. We even have a specific section in the sanctuary where you can sit. However, if you have not been vaccinated, you can still worship with us, but you must wear a mask and sit in the section of the sanctuary specifically assigned for you.”
Does no one recognize how devastating that will be for the ‘family’ of God? Can no one extrapolate how this will translate to interactions between congregants outside the church building?
If Sharon is vaccinated and knows Barbara is not, will Sharon cross the street if pariah Barbara is walking toward her? If Jim is vaccinated, will he avoid the modern ‘leper’ Robert in the restaurant later that evening? Will the vaccinated pastor now consciously or unconsciously shun the known unvaccinated members of the congregation?
And why all this division? According to the science – I mean the REAL science – vaccines are designed to give immunity to the vaccinated against disease. That’s why we vaccinate against measles, and mumps. We vaccinate against the flu. We vaccinate against shingles, pneumonia . . . . and on and on. Why? Because those who are vaccinated are essentially immune to those diseases.
So why in the name of all that is right and good are pastors purposely dividing their church into the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’, when the ‘haves’ are (allegedly) protected against the virus? Why are pastors shaming their unvaccinated sheep? Why are pastors sending a not-so-subliminal message to the ‘haves’ in their congregation to shun the ‘have nots’?
Really – is that what Jesus called pastors to do?
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