Pastors Sue Governors For COVID Orders Citing Religious Freedom

Churches and their leaders in states across the country are suing governors for COVID-19-inspired orders that they say are infringing on their right to worship freely.


This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=1304621

The pro-death crowd wants to die. I’d do a version of what Beshear proposed for Easter: if you want to gather you can but then you go immediately into quarantine.

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There is only one outcome on this. And it isn’t favorable to these litigants. Even the GOP Top Brass knows this. But they’ll use the resultant chaos.

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Can a church sue for the right to burn witches? Make their kids sleep with rattlesnakes? What year are we in again? Can we get crews to put up electric razor wire around the churches while they’re in worship? Holy mother of jello am I of the same species as these?

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They’ll never go into quarantine. The virus doesn’t exist for them unless they get it. Sorta how Trump thinks about the whole thing.

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If they have internet access in their community, there’s simply no reason to coerce the congregation into risking their health. And any religious leader worth his salt would recognize that.

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I think Bill Barr should intervene on behalf of the federal government in support of the churches. Then things could really get interesting.

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Um… that won’t work. The Bill of Rights has never been found to defend “freedoms” that endanger human life. It’s like shouting “fire!” in a crowded theater isn’t defended by freedom of speech. It won’t hold up in any federal court.

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Don’t want to interrupt their revenue stream.

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Which causes the biggest decrease in tithes and offerings? Not having in-person services? Or much of the congregation dying?

How about when you factor in any planned bequests to the church?

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expressed outrage that church gatherings were not categorized as essential services in the state, while institutions like “liquor stores” were.

I know I shouldn’t be laughing.

Alcohol abuse makes a lot of people unsafe in their own homes, for example.

 

The Commonwealth found 19 categories of businesses for which large numbers of people may gather without restraint

 

More from the plaintiffs:

 

And related to this:

is this:

 

And then there’s this:

And not some namby-pamby “self-quarantine,” either – and also not at public expense!

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If it was just going to affect people who voluntarily wanted to risk their own lives, it would be one thing. But clearly, the nature of Covid-19 means a lot of people who don’t have any say in the matter are at risk. Like their kids, their elderly relatives, their co-workers, their neighbors and their health care workers. Not everyone is looking for a shortcut to find out if there really is an afterlife.

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Can’t we just permanently separate from these people? The blue states could help with resettlement. I’d donate! Let them all die together with their guns.

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I guess some folks really didn’t evolve that far from the apes…

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Where’s the Covid Variety Hour?

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In other news on fleecing the flock…

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The LDS Church and the Catholic Church both decided that the physical health of their congregations was more important than attending a service on Easter. Be nice if the Baptists and evangelicals did the same. These same people will demand emergency room services and ICU beds and put our health care workers and system at risk. Worship from home, God does not care if you put yourself in a damn pew.

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These complainers are predisposed to oppose all manifestations of government control even if for the greater good. Thus climate change denial and opposition to sensible gun laws. Also they do not know the meaning of Draconian.

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I don’t understand how their first amendment rights are being violated merely because they can’t meet in person. Internet access is free speech.

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