Last week, governor Inslee set a date for the current mask mandate to be lifted. When he did, it left many declaring the end of the pandemic (or at least, the next phase of it). This is something to celebrate! Since the beginning, COVID has not only caused social upheaval and nearly one million deaths, but it has also been a destabilizing force in our relationships. It has created loneliness, accentuated people’s fears, and showed us that we weigh the conflicting values differently. It is a relief to be approaching a turning point in this health crisis.
One of the things that has not changed is our church’s approach to working with the health department as we all walk together through this novel virus. This has not always been easy, but since the beginning of COVID, we have committed to honoring the governing authorities by following their restrictions, as long as they did not conflict with God’s order. Here is how we stated it in July of 2020:
The elders of Communion Church have chosen to work with the local health officials who we believe God has given common grace to and guided them to the position to help oversee the public in times like these. They are in agreement with state and national health professionals in recommending the wearing of a mask. While I don’t particularly enjoy it, nor would I come to the conclusion of mask-wearing without input from the outside, I am thankful that God is caring for His creation through the people that He has specially equipped to care about pandemics, to develop plans in case of a novel virus, and all of the work that they are doing to try to get the community to work together toward a return to normal.
Our elders believe that working with the health department to help limit the spread of this virus is a responsibility of each of us as citizens, but also of the church as a part of this community. Hopefully, you understand how difficult this time and these decisions are, because all of us would rather be doing things differently. I pray that we use this time to learn dependence on God and humility rather than using all of our energy to bicker and complain. We are the people of God and our hope and confidence is in Him, no matter what life brings.
I bring this up now, because a few people have reached out to the elders about removing masks before March 21st. While I am sympathetic to many of the arguments for dropping masks from our service, I do not see a reason to go back on the logic we have used to this point. Maybe March 21st is an arbitrary day and it could justifiably be the 17th or 24th. At this point, like every point up until now, I do not believe that I have a better view of this than those who are tasked with helping us to navigate COVID.
What we are going to do is find joy in every step forward. After our service on March 27th, a service where masks will be optional, we will have a quick family meeting and then enjoy lunch together downstairs. The light at the end of the tunnel is visible, let’s remain united until we get there.