A petition asking for the provincial government's blessing to reopen chuches in June has been signed by hundreds of churches in Ontario, including three in Newmarket.
The local churches include Catch the Fire, Grace Church, and St. Philopateer & St. Demiana Coptic Church, as well as Heritage Reformed Church of Bradford in Aurora, Immanuel Reformed Church in Nobleton, Chapel Place Presbyterian Church, Jesus New Covenant International Ministries and Truth Tabernacle in Markham, and Bradford Community Church.
The petition's organizers say they want to work with the province to reopen churches, which they say are "a vital service for the people."
Brett Pannell, senior pastor at Heritage Baptist Church, said after looking the petition, he "was happy to add our name to it."
Pannell said his "main concern" for signing the petition was because "it didn't seem like churches were being considered at all as we look toward reopening the economy.
"I want at least for there to be some discussion for churches reopening as we consider reopening other parts of the economy," he said. "That was certainly a big part of what I wanted to add our name to, to let the government know we are an essential part, I believe, of many people's lives.
"The faith aspect of their lives is very much essential and we contribute, I believe, to spiritual health, mental health and in so many other different ways in many ways helping those who are vulnerable in other situations," Pannell added.
The petition, which included input from various denominations, includes a letter that was sent May 11 to Premier Doug Ford, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health and Newmarket-Aurora MPP Christine Elliott and Attorney General Doug Downey.
Petition organizers have asked for a response by Friday, May 29. There has been no word yet from provincial officials.
The petition, which has been signed by 408 churches as of May 21, notes these past two months have been "troubling and perplexing" since services were put on hold.
"We did so to demonstrate love to our fellow citizens during a time of great uncertainty as well as difficulty for civil authorities working with limited information," says the cover letter. "As Christians, we do not fear death because of the resurrection hope that is ours through Christ, but we deeply desire to show love to all people."
Petition organizers say pastors are seeing addictions resurface, not to mention the toll isolation is having on family relationships, as well as physical and mental health.
If churches reopen, they say precautions would be taken, including health measures, in line with government guidelines.
Their plan includes enforcing health protocols based on provincial guidelines; limiting access to approximately 40 per cent of a building's capacity to allow for physicial distancing; use of hand sanitizer and wiping down surfaces; continuing online messaging for people who aren't comfortable coming to church or who have health issues; and urging people to affirm they have no symptoms, have not travelled outside the country in the last 14 days, or been in contact with someone with the virus.
On Tuesday, the province announced it was allowing drive-in religious gatherings as part of its framework to reopen the economy. Conditions include keeping vehicles at least two metres apart; that only members of the same household be in one vehicle; that people do not leave their vehicles; and no more than five people can conduct the service at one time.
This could allow services to be held in a parking lot or a field.
Dr. Charles Gardner, medical officer of health with the Simcoe-Muskoka District Health Unit, said the province has made concessions on permitting certain types of services.
"The province is certainly looking very closely at questions such as this, but they're going to be challenged with institutions which bring people together," he said, noting they would have to be "exceedingly careful" about the potential risks for vulnerable people being exposed in a confined environment, such as entranceways and gathering point within the premises.
There are also inherent risks around religious practices, such as singing, the doctor said.
"If you sing, for example, you're expelling out, potentially, aerosol that could travel more than two metres, so you have to be aware of that sort of thing," Gardner said.
He said he believes "a lot of work" would have to be done by the province before churches could reopen "and it would be with major concessions."
Dr. Aaron Rock, lead pastor at Harvest Bible Chapel in Windsor, is one of the petition organizers. He said they are prepared to work with local officials to develop "all reasonable steps necessary to protect our people, since each community differs in viral rates and spread.
"No one loves our people more than we do, but we also know that they have spiritual needs that are going unmet, and people in the community that need to hear the hope-filled message of the gospel," Rock said.
Rock called the current restrictions around churches are "unreasonable and contrary to the divine mandates given to us by God."
"People are suffering from isolation, addictions and depression," he said. "The church has answers to these questions. We also want to restart our mercy ministries in the community."
Rock believes necessary measures can be put in place to prevent the virus from spreading.
The petition also cites the centuries-long tradition of Christians gathering together weekly for worship.
"The church is not comparable to a sports or dance club and cannot be dismissed as non-essential by an expert in any field," says the petition. "We would respectfully remind the civil government that the church does not exist by permission of the state, for its establishment and rule is found in Jesus Christ himself."
Pannell said churches have been "very respectful of what's going on in our world today and in our communities."
"We do believe that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms does respect our right to meet together," he added. "Yet, at the same point, we do recognize that in a health crisis like this, we put that on the back burner and moved to online-only services."
To read more about the petition, click here.
