One hundred churches are now holding in-church services and they are following strict social distancing rules. Nonetheless, they didn’t follow all of them.
Chicago has begun fining churches for holding services that do not comply with the tyrannical Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s statewide stay-at-home order. The Chicago Police Department told Fox News that three churches will be hit with penalties for services held on Sunday, May 17.
Pritzker decided religious services were nonessential. He said Philadelphia Romanian must meet his 13 arbitrary requirements. Participants had to be younger than 65 years for one thing.
The fines are $500, Fox News was told. Mayor Lori Lightfoot says it’s dangerous and she ordered the fines.
COMMUNISM?
Pastor Florin Cimpean of the Philadelphia Romanian Church of God in Ravenswood said, “The church is a spiritual hospital, okay. We help people with their spiritual needs, emotional needs. And this church is much safer than any other open space like Home Depot, Costco, any type of store,” he commented.
Cimpean, who grew up in Soviet-controlled Romania, added that the church served an immigrant community that survived communism in the past and felt it was threatening their freedoms once again.
“All of these restrictions, they sound more like communism,” he said at an event outside the Thompson Center on Thursday.
“Not even communists were able to completely shut down churches,” Cimpean stated. “We are essential. The spiritual, emotional and mental impact of this [coronavirus] will probably be greater long-term than the medical one.”
THEY DID FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING RULES
The Philadelphia Romanian Church of God limited its congregation to 75 people on Sunday — less than 10 percent of its capacity. Nevertheless, they were among the houses of worship fined by Chicago for its weekend services.
One of Pritzker’s rules is only 10 people can go to church.
Elim Romanian Pentecostal Church and Metro Praise International were also fined for their Sunday services.
“I know how hard it is to break from traditional celebrations of togetherness. But I believe passionately that adapting our expressions of faith in these times is one of the most faithful acts of all,” Pritzker said in a tweet in mid-April.
He added: “The virus doesn’t take a day off, and it’s important for all of you to have the facts, so I’ll continue to deliver them.”
Pritzker earlier this month gave a dire warning on the spread of the virus during the briefing on his state’s reopening plan, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
“I know that we all have a passionate desire to return to the sense of normalcy that we felt before the world knew of COVID-19. Here’s the truth. And I don’t like it any more than you do,” he said. “Until we have a vaccine, or an effective treatment, or enough widespread immunity that new cases fail to materialize, the option of returning to normalcy doesn’t exist.”
Why does he have the right to decide church is nonessential? Many people believe it is essential. Liquor stores, which are heavily taxed, are essential, but not churches?
A number of other churches in Illinois have filed lawsuits arguing that the limits Pritzker places on houses or worship are unconstitutional.
Pritzker should be hauled off to jail for violating the Constitution.
NEIGHBORS PROTESTED THE CHURCHES
The decision didn’t sit well with neighbors who are following the rules, and staged a protest outside the church on Sunday.
The protesters said they have had enough, and believe the church is breaking the law and putting everyone at risk, especially in a neighborhood where there is a higher than average positivity rate for COVID-19.
Well, it isn’t the ‘law.’ No one voted for it. It’s a rule and religious people feel church services are essential.
Some neighborhood residents held a drive-by protest as the Metro Praise International Church flouted the state’s stay-at-home order and welcomed dozens of worshippers for a second straight Sunday.
As drivers blared their horns, one passenger leaned out of a car window and held up a rain-soaked sign that encapsulated the demonstrators’ overarching message: “NOT IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD.”
People are very empowered to violate the rights of others, but whose rights prevail?
Stop the disinformation and slanting of the stay at home order!!! Not all states that have similar orders are from Democratic Governors!!! When does the ridiculous need to make everything political stop? It’s a pandemic and we should be trying to navigate this through the medical experts not the politicians. Even church goers have brains that say, hey maybe we… Read more »
Examine Barr’s behavior. He had 2 TV appearances in which he warned he will act against violations of our liberties during the lockdown. As the abuses increased, what did he do. He changed the subject, never mentions the lockdown anymore. That indicates deception. Instead, he had 2 or more DOJ PR events. In one he highlighted Russian interference in our… Read more »
Illinois is a Communist State taking a major departure from the United State of America. Christianity and some of the other religions are being made illegal in this new emerging nation-state under the Bolshevik Stalin ruler Czar Pritzker. Even IF churches obey social distancing and keep sanitary this Communist society wants the shutdown of these congregations and the confiscation of… Read more »
If people can go to liquor stores then they can go to church, as long as social distancing guidelines are met. Otherwise, it’s a violation of the neutrality rule. The Feds are going to step in. They already did in California.
The feds have taken no legal action.
I salute the Romanian Christians for standing up to the Democrat oppression.
Pritzker’s rules are not constitutional.
The Democrats won’t get their vote.
Republicans must win.
I’m 63 and have worked through the pandemic as an essential business owner in the State of Worshington and I have more than earned the right to make my own decisions; I don’t need a damn babysitter from the government telling me that I have to shelter in place because of my age. Ronald Reagan said “the most feared words… Read more »
You can start to smell the stench of Sh1tcago when you get near the anus of the earth known as Gary, Indiana. The CPUSA reigns supreme in the steaming cesspool on Lake Michigan and in San Francisco. Detroilet and Baltiless are some other CPUSA utopias and don’t forget Philthydelphia. Are there any cities left that aren’t conquered enemy territory? (rhetorical)… Read more »