Church lawsuit against Gov. Newsom’s coronavirus shutdown is about politics, not prayer
On Saturday, a Virginia pastor who had mocked the coronavirus and ignored social distancing guidelines to hold a large church service died of COVID-19.
On Monday, a group of pastors in Southern California filed a lawsuit against Gov. Gavin Newsom, accusing him of violating their constitutional rights with his statewide stay-at-home order to slow the virus’ spread.
These pastors don’t have a legal, scientific or theological leg to stand on. In fact, they and their parishioners may even owe their lives to the governor’s wise decision to protect Californians through mandatory “physical distancing.” Just look at New York, where officials delayed in acting and over 10,000 people have died. Some are being buried in mass graves.
California has so far evaded that fate, thanks to Newsom’s order.
Churches provide no sanctuary from this terrible virus. The coronavirus has devastated churches in the Sacramento area, and across the nation. Two members of one Greenhaven church have died, while over 70 members of a church in unincorporated Sacramento County tested positive for the disease. Pastors and parishioners around the country have been struck down by the disease. In Italy, more than 100 priests have died.
That’s why the vast majority of churches and other houses of worship have wisely shifted to online services. Using computers or telephone lines, most communities of faith are finding safe ways to pray and worship without hastening the funerals of any of their members. They are proving that their faith, and their bonds to each other, do not depend on walls or pews. They know that faith lives in the heart – and that we honor the highest calling of all when we act to protect the health and the lives of the people in our community.
The lawsuit filed against Newsom, along with California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and local officials in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, reeks of politics rather than prayer. It was filed by a law firm run by Harmeet Dhillon, a longtime California Republican Party official. It claims the stay-at-home order represents a “gross abuse” of power that “deprives” Californians of their constitutional rights.
Constitutional experts beg to differ.
“All constitutional rights are limited in some respect,” Kathleen Hoke, a professor at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law, told McClatchy News.
“Freedom of religion under the First Amendment, she said, primarily protects religious organizations from being treated differently,” according to McClatchy News.
“Here, we absolutely do not have this,” Hoke said of stay-at-home orders. “We have the states treating all organizations the same.”
If Newsom and county officials had banned only religious services from taking place, they would be violating constitutional rights – and this Editorial Board would be criticizing them harshly. But these officials have also banned people from gathering in restaurants, bars, yoga classes and gyms. The order is broad, not narrow, and its purpose is clear: to save lives.
“I don’t think anyone could question that there is a compelling purpose right now,” Hoke said. “We are in a global pandemic.”
In an attempt to stoke culture war tensions, the litigious pastors point out that grocery stores, liquor stores and marijuana shops have been allowed to remain open. But there’s a fundamental difference between a store – where people can shop separately, with proper social distancing – and a place of worship. Most public worship services involve singing, touching hands and sharing pews in a confined space. The risk is too high, especially when the power of prayer is accessible from the safety of one’s own home.
Newsom’s stay-at-home order is both constitutional and moral, and these lawsuit-happy pastors are on the wrong side of history. This is a message they can expect to hear loud and clear when they stand before the judge.
This story was originally published April 14, 2020 at 11:31 AM.