December 8, 2020
Greetings, as we enter a most unusual Christmas season. Thankfully while much is changing, our incarnate Savior remains the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Yesterday, as most of us would have anticipated, the Public Health Order in British Columbia curtailing public gatherings was extended until January 8, 2021. As a corollary to this, we have been experiencing greater unrest among our churches as people are more strongly expressing a variety of opinions regarding the appropriateness of government actions, sincerely asking what the correct response ought to be from the church of Jesus Christ. While not a new debate during the ten months of Covid, the extension of the Public Health Orders does seem to have brought a greater edge to the conversations. At Fellowship Pacific, our staff has sought to be regularly in touch with our churches and we are fully aware that most church leaders are having difficult discussions about this issue.
As most of you are aware, our Regional Board and Staff have continued to encourage our churches to follow these Public Health Orders. It is important for you to know that our position has not changed. In this update, we want to express some of our rationale for this decision.
As we do so, please remember three important truths. First, we understand that each of our churches is autonomous and therefore, the right and responsibility of making this decision lies with them. As Fellowship Pacific, we have no authority to tell you what to do. We do, however, want to clearly express our perspective so you are not wondering about what we are thinking. Second, we also understand that not everybody in every church will agree with this or even agree with the rationale presented. As mentioned, this discussion is thriving in most churches. These two realities bring us to our third truth: we are called to be a gracious and loving people. So please remember that this is a time where we have ample opportunity to demonstrate that the transforming love of Jesus is more than simply words we use when we all agree. There are few demonstrations of the genuineness of the work of Jesus greater than unity found through our identity in him, especially when it is not natural for that to be true. With all of these caveats in place, please allow us to share some of our rationale for supporting the Public Health Orders.
Biblical Grounding:
Hopefully we are all conversant with the numerous passages of Scripture that enjoin us to be obedient to civil authorities, even to the point of suffering. Passages such as 1 Peter 2:12-17, Romans 13:1-4, and Titus 3:1 remind us that even pagan authorities ultimately derive their authority from God, and that “therefore he who resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgement.” In 1 Peter, Peter extends his argument about living good lives—characterized by good deeds—into submission to government and even to the point of telling slaves to suffer for doing good, following the example that Christ gave. He ultimately bases his discussion of “suffering for doing good” on the fact that our identity is found in Jesus (1 Peter 3:18).
This has been the consistent message of the church through the ages. It is important, however, to also acknowledge that there has always been an exception to this general rule. In Acts 5:27-32, Peter also taught that when the law of the land transgresses the law of God, the law of God must be followed. Stated another way, if the government forbids us to do what God commands or requires us to do what God forbids, then we must obey God.
For some today, the lockdown on public gatherings contravenes the law of God. Specifically, it is seen as contrary to the instructions of Hebrews 10:24-25, which states “let us consider how we may spur one another on to love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
The short form of a potentially long discussion is that the Regional Board and Staff do not, at this point, see this passage as providing adequate warrant for civil disobedience as it relates to the current pandemic lockdown on gatherings. Why? Overall, because the lockdown does not restrain us from worshipping together, building disciples, encouraging one another, or pursuing our mission. Below are listed a few points worth noting in this passage:
- The Hebrews passage is directed at church people who chose for themselves not to meet with others. It was not a command to churches regarding our response to government authorities, and may in fact be most applicable today to Christians who choose to skip church because it is online.
- The passage states that a primary reason for meeting together is to spur one another on to love and good deeds. In the pandemic world, spurring one another to love and good deeds may well take the form of not asserting our rights, if it comes at the risk of passing on the virus to others.
- Most importantly, the current Public Health Orders do not preclude gathering but rather state that we cannot do so in-person, for a prescribed period of time. We can still gather using the technology available to us, just not in the place or way we usually have done so. As mentioned in previous updates, our government is encouraging both gathering online and creativity in fulfilling our purpose, repeatedly telling faith communities that they are needed more than ever. Both myself, as Regional Director, and Brent Chapman, President of Fellowship Pacific, have participated in conference calls with Dr. Henry, Minister Dix, and Premier Horgan. We believe that our government leaders are sincere in their encouragement, and have been assured that this is for as short a period of time as is prudent for health reasons.
In an excellent article https://ca.thegospelcoalition.org/columns/ad-fontes/my-threshold-for-civil-disobedience-in-a-covid19-world/ on the Gospel Coalition Canada website, Paul Carter quotes the famous Puritan pastor Richard Baxter as answering a question about “omitting church assemblies” if a magistrate forbids them. Baxter’s response was that it is one thing to forbid them for a time due to special causes such as infection or pestilence, and quite another to forbid them all together. Carter summarizes his argument, stating that “with a common-sense reading of the applicable Scriptures and informed by the historical interpretations and application of the church, it does not yet appear as though we have reached the biblical threshold for civil disobedience…” The position of Carter is a fair representation of the understanding of your Regional Board and Staff as it pertains to balancing the various Scriptures on this topic.
A Convergence of Practical and Missional Realities: The teaching of Jesus on the two greatest commandments is well known. In response to a question about what must be done to receive eternal life, Jesus responded, “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind,’ and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” He then went on to tell the story of the Good Samaritan, finally asking the religious questioner, “which of these three (Priest, Levite, Samaritan) do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell in the hands of the robbers?”
This story is reflective of the tenor of the entire New Testament. We are to love people, not simply through words but in concrete and discernable actions. How we act through the experience of Covid has tremendous power to either confirm or deny the validity of gospel words that we have spoken to friends in our communities. In our corner of the world today there are people becoming very ill and even dying from Covid 19. We recognize that the current daily case number is such that if the “curve” does not come down, the health system will be overwhelmed. Every one of us has the opportunity to check out these facts for ourselves at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control website. As of the time of this update, there are over 36,000 cases in British Columbia, with 76 people in critical care and 492 deaths. In the past three days alone, there have been 2020 new cases and 35 more deaths. World-wide, there are over 66 million cases, with over 1.5 million deaths.
Most of us also know that it is the weakest and most vulnerable of our population who are at greatest risk. We hear daily of outbreaks in care homes and hospitals, as well as affecting others with pre-existing conditions. Within Fellowship Pacific, we have numerous front-line care givers, teachers, and people within our churches who are in high-risk categories. We have the privilege of partnering closely with Baptist Housing, the largest faith-based seniors housing provider in the province. They assure us that the risk is real and is terrifying for residents. This is also true for those in our circles working with migrant workers, refugees, and first nations people.
In reference to caring for those who are sick, hungry, thirsty, or strangers, Jesus taught in Matthew 25 that whatever we do “for the least of these” we do for him. Likewise, whatever we fail to do for them, we fail to do for Jesus. It is difficult to justify an assertion of the right to in-person gatherings when we are fully aware of the real risk this may pose to both the vulnerable in our church families and to the greater community around us, not to mention the disrespect it demonstrates to our partnering Fellowship ministries. The simple truth is that by advocating open gatherings in our churches, we communicate that our right to gather is more important than the lives or health of people around us.
Charter of Rights and Freedoms:
Another aspect of the Covid gathering issue pertains to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. There is a belief among some that the rights of Christians are being trampled by the government as they over-extend their authority, transgressing religious rights protected in the Charter. However, this is a heavily debated issue. At the risk of pretending to be lawyers, it is important to note that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms states in the first section that these rights are never absolute and are subject to “reasonable limits.” It is also the case that emergency powers give governments a lot of leeway during events like pandemics. So the question is less about the legal right of government to restrict gathering in some scenarios, but rather the judgement required to determine whether or not the application of emergency powers during Covid has gone too far.
Most specifically, as pointed out in an article in the Vancouver Sun by UBC law professor Brian Bird, the issue is focused on the potential discriminatory application of the Public Health Orders towards churches, when it is not applied equally elsewhere. If it is acceptable to allow a mask-wearing crowd in Costco, to open shopping malls, or even to maintain in-person education, then why is it not acceptable to open churches?
These are valid concerns, and are a matter of ongoing discussion by the Regional Board. You should be aware that if the current disparity in application of the Orders were to continue for very long, we would see a need for us to intervene legally for the purpose of not having Charter rights narrowed, or setting a precedent that could be used against religious groups on other issues.
At this time, we are aware that our health officials are in a no-win situation, in that they are being required to juggle the competing values of health, individual freedoms, economic recovery (including child-care), emotional well-being, and no doubt—political gain. It is inevitable that some groups will rightfully feel treated unfairly. It is unlikely our health leaders can find a path through these competing values and yet be perfectly consistent while addressing all the issues. As such, we want to give some grace to those serving in a very difficult situation. Thus far, we have believed Dr. Bonnie Henry as she has reiterated her desire for good behavior over increasing rules. We desire to support and encourage her in this approach.
However, you may be assured that the Regional Board will continue to closely review the issues of our religious freedoms and will join with others in defense of them should it become clear that we need to do so.
We desire to be clear on this. At this point in the Covid struggle, even if the Regional Board were to intervene legally in defense of our Charter Rights, we would still be stating our support for a voluntary (rather than legal) suspending of gathering because it seems biblically sound and missionally directed.
In conclusion, please understand us. We fully recognize the struggle that each of our churches is enduring. Along with many others in our communities, Covid has had a real and painful cost on our churches and sense of community. We also know that as leaders in our churches and agencies, you are under ongoing pressure from people on both sides of this issue. We have no desire to add to that pressure.
Never-the-less, at the risk of you misunderstanding our heart for you and your ministries, as a Board and Staff, we continue to encourage you to follow the Public Health Orders. As Fellowship Pacific, we have come a long way down the path to meaningful partnership and growing relationships. We would ask you to carefully consider this as you make your decisions as churches. A final reminder that we want to demonstrate graciousness and love to one another, modelling the heart of Jesus that is expressed so well in Philippians 2. We do not emulate Jesus by claiming our rights, but rather by giving them up for the good of others, to the ultimate glory of God. And as Paul reminds us, God will work in each of us to will and to act in order to achieve his good purpose.
Literally, we should pause to thank God that he is in control.
On Behalf of the Regional Board and Staff,
- Dr. David Horita (Regional Director)
- Pastor Brent Chapman (Regional President, Lead Pastor SouthRidge Fellowship)
- Dr. Barton Priebe (Regional Board Executive, Lead Pastor Central Baptist Victoria)
- Pastor Jeremy Johnson (Regional Board Executive, Executive Pastor Ministries & Staff, Village Church)