Dr. Oludayo Tade
Sir: As a contemporary cause of social change, COVID-19 is altering cherished values, transforming cultures, rituals and social institutions. Institutions of the family, politics, education, media and religion have been hit below the belt and are battling to survive and stay relevant. Of these institutions, religious institution is vociferous in its acceptance of the reality of COVID-19, particularly the way the virus is altering and redefining religious spaces and practices. Some would even say that the pandemic is forcing followers to re-evaluate their religiosity.
The two voices reverberating against the continued ban on religious gathering are Bishop David Oyedepo of Living Faith International (Winners Chapel) and Chris Oyakhilome of Love World Incorporated. Oyedepo smelled rat that locking the church and opening the market space was aimed at checking the growth of the church of God. Oyakhilome was badly hit with the disappearance of performances which he was usually treated to and the reverence extended to him by the mammoth worshippers.
Was the policy of lockdown designed to diminish the influence and growth of the church as posited by Oyedepo?
While the mega churches have their own broadcast channels and have been reaching followers online while holding large conventions before now, their complaints over COVID-19 ban show the importance of face-to-face communication and how this is seemingly irreplaceable by virtual preaching. It was Oyakhilome who let this out while complaining on why some Christian leaders agreed with government that the church should be closed. He felt they had done a disservice to the House of God. Is church not a place of healing, he asked?
Certainly, religious leaders are finding this time very strange but they have to adjust to it. Being alone in the cathedral is like a footballer playing alone in the stadium without fans. It is boring…no viewers, no clapping for the right moves. But as good shepherds, the pastorate must ensure that the sheep follows the Biblical counsel in Isaiah 26:20 to be safe.
We should also understand the political economy of our positions on the ban. Like other institutions, the partial or total lockdown is having impact on churches (and mosques) diminishing human presence, tithes, donations and offerings.Many ongoing projects within the church (and mosques) have also stopped because the ‘feeders’ are also struggling to survive and saving the little left to feed. During this time, very few churches and mosques have risen to support their members, while other ‘ministers’ still plead with their members enduring salary cuts, disengagement, rightsizing and downsizing to send money to ‘nurture the work of God’.
There is no need for the bishop to compare food market opening with banned church gathering. Market people are not suffering spiritual famine — they start their day with individual and group prayers while market evangelists take the world of God to them to indicate that the church is not the physical structures. How orderly and safe will it be to be inside church singing and dancing with face masks on? If shepherds feel the congregation are denied spiritual foods, he can end spiritual famine by leveraging on social media and online broadcast channels to feed the sheep.
It is logical to say that no one is standing against the church because the church of God is not emplaced in the territories of individual pastors. What has happened is a rational reaction on the part of the followers to choose between staying safe at home or risking being arrested or infected in the ‘House of God’. Who orchestrated the plan that the Christians will end their 40 days fasting with the coming of corona virus and that the Muslims will observe Ramadan fasting without the normal rituals?
I think God is using the pandemic to tell all of us that not a pastor or Imam can save whom he has not saved. This perhaps explains why people are looking up to God, not man as the author and finisher of their faiths.
The Church is a risky space for COVID-19 spread. For instance, COVID-19 transmission in South Korea was fuelled by the Shincheonji Church whose 5,080 members tested positive for COVID-19 as at March 25 when the country’s confirmed cases was 9,137! If it is to pray, let the heads of churches and mosques pray for normalcy to return in order to have huge thanksgiving services. Until then, the ban on religious activities is meaningful and functionally oriented towards preventing religious centres from becoming centres of COVID-19 dispersal.
- Dr Oludayo Tade, dotad2003@yahoo.com
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