Healing, faith and fear: church opening in the United States during COVID-19 restrictions

This article examines how resistance to stay-at-home orders was framed to congregants through sermons and in statements to media outlets. Using an approach informed by grounded theory, we analysed news articles of church behaviour and the YouTube videos of sermons from pastors that protested against...

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VerfasserInnen: Smith, Naomi (VerfasserIn) ; Snider, Anne-Marie (VerfasserIn)
Medienart: Elektronisch Aufsatz
Sprache:Englisch
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Veröffentlicht: Carfax Publ. 2023
In: Journal of contemporary religion
Jahr: 2023, Band: 38, Heft: 2, Seiten: 283-304
normierte Schlagwort(-folgen):B USA / Freikirche / COVID-19 / Maßnahme / Opposition / Public Health
RelBib Classification:AD Religionssoziologie; Religionspolitik
AG Religiöses Leben; materielle Religion
CA Christentum
KBQ Nordamerika
KDG Freikirche
TK Neueste Zeit
ZB Soziologie
weitere Schlagwörter:B Resistance
B Public Health
B Covid-19
B Evangelical
B Faith
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Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:This article examines how resistance to stay-at-home orders was framed to congregants through sermons and in statements to media outlets. Using an approach informed by grounded theory, we analysed news articles of church behaviour and the YouTube videos of sermons from pastors that protested against COVID-19 guidelines from March 2020 to November 2020. We also draw on legal filings to identify churches that most actively resisted closures. In analysing these publicly available data, a relationship between church openings in the United States and an evangelical theology of resistance particular to non-denominational churches to public health efforts emerged. Our analysis found that ‘largely evangelical’ churches that are not considered part of a mainline evangelical denomination were more likely to seek ways to remain open in defiance of public health orders. We use the terms ‘largely evangelical’ and ‘mainline evangelical’ to distinguish these two very different denominational families. Evidence from this article suggests that evangelical Christian churches in the US that are not considered ‘mainline evangelical’ denominations (e.g. non-denominational, Pentecostal) were more likely to resist stay-at-home orders and more prepared to be legally active in resisting such policies and gather indoors (as opposed to Catholic churches and ‘mainline evangelical’ denominations).
ISSN:1469-9419
Enthält:Enthalten in: Journal of contemporary religion
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1080/13537903.2023.2206206