A federal judge has struck down an Orthodox Jewish group’s lawsuit against New York’s restrictions on worship in large groups during the pandemic. The number of virus cases is creeping up in the Northeast, the state is cracking down and religious groups, including some Roman Catholics, are upset at what they see as infringements on their religious freedoms, guaranteed under the Constitution.
No one wants to impede the practices of the religious. But we are in a health emergency, the fight of our lives in what one doctor told me is not just the story of the year but will turn out to be the story of this century. So why is it so hard for religious groups — which are, after all, supposed to be on the side of humanity — to comply? A hostess at a popular restaurant I frequent smiled knowingly before answering. “It’s about the money,” she said. And she’s right.
Indeed, I’m always struck by the number of religious sects to which you must tithe a percentage of your income when you join. If the congregation goes viral, then it’s harder not only to collect but to control people. I must acknowledge I haven’t physically been to church since Lent, although I “attend” Mass online every Sunday morning and send in a monthly offering. Do I do other things while watching the Mass? Of course. Is this the best way to go to church? It isn’t. Would I be more attentive sitting in a pew? Yes and no as at present I would be more fearful.
But as I’ve suggested, control isn’t merely financial. There’s no question that religion seeks to control the way you live psychologically. It wouldn’t exist otherwise. Each faith has precepts that it believes govern a moral life. So control isn’t as much of an issue as the amount of control. Some sects believe in living in community. That’s the way to keep everyone in the fold. It’s harder to resist a request or an admonition if the person is in front of you, close to you, face-to-face. Social distancing, masks, remote activities mitigate against this.
And that’s why Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett can subsume her will in the People of Praise sect, seeking the approval of her husband, the head of her life, and yet feel perfectly comfortable attending the mask-less Rose Garden announcement of her nomination with her mask-less children — an event that Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, described as a super-spreader. What religion — which ironically comes from the Latin “religio,” “to link” — ultimately demonstrates is that there is very little common ground in this world. People believe and deny what they want. Even within a religion, people pick and choose, hence the need for tight physical controls. The coronavirus mandates are the inconvenient truth for any religion that requires community. And so people of faith ignore them, possibly jeopardizing the lives of others.
But weren’t religions established for the common good? And what’s freeing about not wearing a mask and yet belonging to a sect that not only tells you how to live but demands a certain portion of your income while you’re doing it?