Just in time for Christmas.
From here:
Dear friends:
You will have heard by now that I have made the difficult decision to shutter our churches for public worship as a preventative measure against the unrestrained spread of the Omicron variant of concern which is circulating in our midst.
This is a hard time. We are being asked to dig very deep to accede to this moment with strength and maturity. The psalm quoted above, is one of assurance. It’s about trust in the power of God to guide and fortify us in the face of fear. God is called a fortress and a refuge – places of protection and shelter. Well, we have need of both in this moment.
But we are not helpless. Added to this deep trust is the use of the good judgement and common sense gifted to us as God’s beloved children. So, equipped with these abilities and God’s steadfast presence and care, we move forward into this next chapter of the pandemic.
It seems amazing that a scant three weeks ago, the word Omicron was not in our lexicons. Yet as I write to you, the number of cases in Ontario from this now predominant variant are doubling every two or three days, with case counts in our diocese rising to levels we haven’t seen since the third wave of the pandemic.
The extent of transmission in our communities has led many to urgently call for a set of new guidelines to act as a “circuit breaker” to slow infection and buy time to ramp up vaccination efforts. We are doing our part to contribute to this effort even as we place our trust in God.
It seems, the bishop has lost her faith – in the vaccines:
That’s a lot of money not collected on Christmas Eve. The Anglican churches are so empty anyway (I attend one so I know) there is little chance of transmission/infection. Much lower chance of transmission than in a restaurant. Surely this virtue-signaling diocese is heading straight for bankruptcy.
And the oh holy vaccines still haven’t given us our freedom. But the next booster will…and the one after that…and then the one after that..
Let’s cancel Christmas to save Easter.
As long as the ACoC continues to worship the “god of political expediency” it really has no future. The time has long since past for a complete housecleaning within the ACoC and have leadership that accepts the authority of Scripture. True Anglicans should search out a parish associated with the ACNA and abandoned the apostates.
While it has shut Churches near and far on the “back pocket” warrant of “the local option”. The true Church is never “local”.
Hmm.