[BostonCard]

The question is what happens if you designate some activities as essential. If churches are not considered essential, then you could see a situation arise where there is a lawsuit challenging the designation of religious services as nonessential.

BC

Essential doesn't mean crazy. Even in the early days, you went to grocery stores with appropriate caution. There's no respectable liturgy that can't be modified to the circumstances. The Mass has been said in all sorts of unlikely places and circumstances. Zoom isn't that big a departure.

That said, you DO keep churches open.

Well, I agree with your first paragraph, and I suspect you will find few sources of disagreement.  Our Synagogue, in California, is conducting services over zoom.  The shelter in place orders haven't affected whether it conducts services, but it has prevented it from conducting in person services. So, when people are arguing for "opening the churches", they mean "opening them for in person services", and that could be more contentious.  You could probably come to a compromise where church services are allowed if there is some limit on the density of people in the building, however, even that is somewhat risky given the length of exposure and the singing that may be occurring.

BC

[BostonCard]

The question is what happens if you designate some activities as essential. If churches are not considered essential, then you could see a situation arise where there is a lawsuit challenging the designation of religious services as nonessential.

BC

Essential doesn't mean crazy. Even in the early days, you went to grocery stores with appropriate caution. There's no respectable liturgy that can't be modified to the circumstances. The Mass has been said in all sorts of unlikely places and circumstances. Zoom isn't that big a departure.

That said, you DO keep churches open.

Well, I agree with your first paragraph, and I suspect you will find few sources of disagreement.  Our Synagogue, in California, is conducting services over zoom.  The shelter in place orders haven't affected whether it conducts services, but it has prevented it from conducting in person services. So, when people are arguing for "opening the churches", they mean "opening them for in person services", and that could be more contentious.  You could probably come to a compromise where church services are allowed if there is some limit on the density of people in the building, however, even that is somewhat risky given the length of exposure and the singing that may be occurring.

BC