Government Comes for Church After Maskless Pastor, Alone in Building, Opens Door for Health Official
The coronavirus panic pimps’ war on Christians rages on — this time in Maryland, where a county health official issued a citation to a pastor because he answered a church door without a mask. At the time, the church was empty because there were no services going on.
Moreover, the pastor — who is also a physician — said he was alone in his office at the Community United Methodist Church in Pasadena when an Anne Arundel County health official showed up at his door unannounced.
The Rev. Dennis Jackman told the American Constitutional Rights Union that after issuing the citation, the health official warned that he would return and threatened to shut down the church if it wasn’t in compliance with local COVID-19 guidance.
The official further threatened Jackman with criminal charges that could involve a one-year jail sentence and a fine of up to $5,000, the pastor said.
“I was in my office alone, without a mask on, and heard someone at the locked door of the church,” he recounted to the ACRU. “I was not expecting anyone, so I went to see who was trying to get in the church.
“Immediately after answering the door, I went to my desk and put on my mask, but the health official seemed intent on finding something worthy of a citation.”
Elin Jones, public information director for the Anne Arundel County Department of Health, told The Star Democrat in Maryland that the agency received a complaint about the church on Nov. 16.
“The complaint stated that the pastor is not wearing a face covering and is not social distancing,” Jones said. “It stated the pastor does not require the employees or any of the congregation to wear the required face coverings. The pastor is constantly within 6 feet of people while not wearing a face covering. There was also handshaking, high-fives and fist bumps by the congregation. Complaints were made to the committee that oversees the church with no results.”
Jackman disputed that, telling Fox News host Tucker Carlson on Tuesday that he and his fellow church members follow coronavirus guidelines.
“We are very much sticking to social distancing,” he said. “Everybody has to wear a mask. We have hand sanitation stations right as you come into the lobby and also right before you go into the sanctuary. We have pews marked off to make sure that we keep distances.”
Jones said an inspector was dispatched to the church the day after the complaint was received and the pastor “opened the door without a face covering and met the inspector outside the house within six feet of the inspector.”
She said the pastor “was issued an Order of Immediate Compliance to obey state orders mandating the wearing of masks and social distancing inside public spaces and outdoors when social distancing cannot be assured,” The Star Democrat reported.
Jones said the church was found to be in compliance during a follow-up inspection Nov. 20 and the complaint case was closed.
ACRU President Lori Roman said Maryland must stop harassing and persecuting Christians while releasing scores of criminals from jail over dubious coronavirus concerns.
“Within the span of a week, Governor [Larry] Hogan has signed an executive order releasing prisoners, citing COVID, and health departments across the state have been unleashed to threaten and harass pastors and churches,” she said in a statement. “The entire country is watching this juxtaposition of principles and priorities.”
Roman underscored that “the attack on churches must stop. American Constitutional Rights Union will work to defend against authoritarian attacks on any church in the country.”
“A virus cannot erase our freedoms,” she said.
Maryland pastor who is also a physician issued citation for not wearing mask in empty churchhttps://t.co/b4t7WHPC0J
— The Christian Post (@ChristianPost) December 2, 2020
The ACRU cited recent comments by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, who warned that petty government dictators are exploiting the coronavirus crisis to erode Americans’ civil liberties, including their freedom of religion.
“The pandemic has resulted in previously unimaginable restrictions on individual liberty,” Alito said. “It pains me to say this, but in certain quarters, religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored right.”
Specifically, the justice warned that many local lawmakers’ COVID-19 restrictions have “blatantly discriminated against houses of worship.”
It bears noting that the U.S. Constitution is not suspended because of the coronavirus. If anything, our constitutional freedoms are even more important during a crisis.
Keep in mind that the same hypocritical politicians who scold people for wanting to attend church refuse to condemn the numerous Black Lives Matter demonstrations where participants are packed close together without masks.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
