Pastors say liquor stores are deemed ‘essential’ amid pandemic, but their work isn’t
Bishop Sean O’Neal recently traveled nearly 700 miles round-trip to console the family of a pastor who died suddenly of a heart attack. During his trip amid the pandemic, O’Neal said he was nervous about getting pulled over by police since his service is currently not considered essential under Gov. Gavin Newsom’s executive order to shelter in place.
Police did not stop the pastor during his trip, but O’Neal said church leaders should be free to work without those concerns.
“This is egregious and improper,” he told The Fresno Bee. “I should be able to just say, ‘Hey, I’m a pastor doing pastor business.’”
On April 17, leaders with the California-Nevada Church of God, headquartered in Fresno, and Iglesia De Dios Region Suroeste, sent a letter to the governor urging him to revise the stay-at-home order to include pastoral care as an essential business.
The leaders represent more than 200 churches in California, including some in Fresno, Clovis and Madera. O’Neal leads 130 churches across California, and Samuel Santana, bishop of Iglesia de Dios Region Suroeste, leads another 85 churches.
Newsom’s office didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment.
O’Neal, who is the administrative bishop for the California-Nevada Church of God, and Santana are asking Newsom to revise his order so it’s more in line with federal guidelines, which include pastoral care as an essential business.
“Since this plague has come to our State, the sick and dying – and their families – need the succor that medical technology cannot provide,” church leaders say in the letter to Newsom, which was written by attorney Kevin Snider, with the Pacific Justice Institute. “Both clergy and mental health professionals deal with persons facing serious illness and end-of-life issues.”
The Pacific Justice Institute is representing the church leaders.
“We are not saying we want to gather because we want to be at the forefront on keeping people healthy. We are saying, to limit the work of clergy to do the business of church is improper, unconstitutional and not fair,” O’Neal said. “If a doctor can do work, psychiatrists can do work, then ordained clergy should absolutely have the right to do work.”
Marijuana and liquor stores are considered essential business under the order, O’Neal said, but if a member of the clergy is out doing work to provide counseling, last rites or hearing confessions, “they are not complying with the order.”
Snider on Wednesday said he had also not heard back from Newsom’s office yet.
The Catholic Diocese of Fresno, under its guidelines released a day before Newsom’s stay-at-home order, allows priests to visit the ill and dying. Priests must be in good health, and not fall under any of the high-risk groups for severe complications to a COVID-19 infection.
“Priests are still responding to sick calls and are adhering to the required protective measures as established at each facility if they are allowed admittance,” Teresa Dominguez, chancellor for the diocese, said in an email.
Additionally, those who are seeking confessions are being “guided to make a ‘profound act of contrition’ in prayer to the Lord and then trust in his great love and mercy,” she said.
“If the person believes he/she is in a state of mortal sin, they are to do the same and then seek out a priest to hear their confession and receive absolution after the protective measures are lifted,” she added.
O’Neal said the issue should be cleared up pastors don’t have to worry about being cited for doing their jobs.
“We are respectfully petitioning the governor with a reasonable request,” he said. “I don’t want a pastor to be out in the middle of the night and get pulled over and have a hard time because he is doing essential work, but he’s not been cleared as an essential worker. So that’s what we are up against.”
This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 3:44 PM.
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