Too early: Local churches feel rushed to reopen during the pandemic

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — With President Trump’s support, local churches are preparing to welcome attendees back. But some church pastors across the city of Jacksonville feel there is a rush to reopen for in-person services.

On Friday, Trump called houses of worship essential, and implored governors reopen them across the country. But in Florida, they were never ordered to close.

Instead, to keep COVID-19 from spreading, many church leaders used drive-through and online services.

Impact Church Pastor George Davis said most Sundays, his church is packed with thousands of members, so he wants to make sure his team has a plan before welcoming them back.

“We are going to be requiring as people come in that temperatures are checked, hand out PPE (personal protective equipment) for those that don’t have it, and ask people to wear a mask while they’re in service,” said Davis.

But Bethel Baptist Church Bishop Rudolph Mckissick Jr. says it’s too soon to even think about it.

“How can we open when three zip codes in our city have had the largest uptick over the last three weeks? And those zip codes are majority African Americans,” McKissick added.

For now, these two pastors will continue services remotely to avoid in-person crowds.

“We’ve got to be smart, we’ve got to be safe, we’ve got to exercise wisdom,” said McKissik.

“We've been doing the same thing for the last ten weeks. I look straight into a camera and give my message through the camera,” Davis explained.

Church pastors say they appreciate the president’s support during the pandemic, but reopening without a plan isn’t safe.

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