In short, a 14-day order that has allowed local churches to worship inside, if they so chose, will now lead into a preliminary injunction hearing on Friday, May 29. It was so ordered on May 16 by United State District Judge James C. Dever III. The hearing will take place at 11 a.m. in a courtroom of the Terry Sanford Federal Building in Raleigh.
A phone caller to WIZS, intending to be on the air but the show had just ended, asked when folks could go back to church. The answer lately has been when your church decides to open.
In the link above, a place of worship an its congregation can read about: Social Distancing and Minimizing Exposure; Cloth Face Coverings; Cleaning and Hygiene; Monitoring for Symptoms; Protecting Vulnerable Populations; Combating Misinformation; Water and Ventilation Systems; Additional Resources.
But the larger verdict has been rendered so far by churches choosing not to open, such as the information recently published in a story by northcarolinahealthnews.org. (“Despite judge’s ruling allowing for services, most NC churches remaining closed“) This story link also has embedded within it the text of the petition filed and the temporary injunction ordered with the including exhibits.
The 14-day order prevents the State of North Carolina from blocking services inside and enforcement actions against same.
Governor Roy Cooper issued a press release stating: “We don’t want indoor meetings to become hot spots for the virus and our health experts continue to warn that large groups sitting together inside for long periods of time are much more likely to cause the spread of COVID-19. While our office disagrees with the decision, we will not appeal, but instead urge houses of worship and their leaders to voluntarily follow public health guidance to keep their members safe.”
But as the 14 days have begun to wrap up, the new answer to our WIZS caller’s question is: faith based communities will need now to see and hear the next steps offered by the Federal Court Friday as well as any updated NCDHHS guidance.
The main apparent rub with Governor Cooper’s Executive Order 138, which essentially stated church goers could only be inside with a maximum of 10 people if no other options were present, is that the order is unconstitutional, and, for lack of a better way to express it, unfair and inconsistent. Also, there is the question of who determines what worship is. Is “valid” worship decided by the worshipers or a party of enforcement such as a sheriff or sheriff’s deputy?
So the federal judge issued a temporary restraining order, the summation of which called for Friday’s hearing and included the words that worshipers “should observe the Recommendations to Promote Social Distancing and Reduce Transmissions to the extent practicable.”
Has your church held worship inside? Did you go? What are your hopes? Go to facebook.com/wizsradio and tell us in the comments under this story.