Why are vans allowed to carry so many, but large churches so few?

EDITOR: The Coronavirus continues to be of great concern around the world and here in SVG. The alarming rate of the local cases is indeed very serious. As a result, protocols have been changed and rightly so.

As a people, we are to obey the laws of the land and obey those in authority. With the many efforts put in place, yet still it doesn’t seem to be under control. The virus, we recognize, would be here with us for sometime and so we have to learn to live with it.

In spite of the wearing of masks and the other protocols, many continue to be affected. Thank God here in St. Vincent we have not had any serious case where there have been deaths. But in many other countries although it is mandatory that masks be worn or face protection, yet still in those countries it continues to rise and even in some cases there are deaths. Thus, it must be in the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ to really set us free and gives protection.

In light of this, I strongly disagree with the latest changes made in the protocol where indoor gathering is limited to a maximum of ten persons. This latest one has severely affected the churches. As a Christian nation we are supposed to obey those in authority, but how could passenger vans be allowed to carry 12 persons, where passengers sit in close proximity, while in the churches where there is so much room that each person can sit six feet apart, they are only allowed a maximum of ten persons? I cannot see the logic in this one.

The churches are where the presence of the Lord is and He blesses the congregation. In the house of the Lord there is protection by the Lord and it is where the Christians can meet united and pray. Now, it is almost impossible for churches to meet, while persons are allowed to congregate in stores, buses, offices and elsewhere without the correct physical distancing of six feet. But the churches where there is enough space for physical distancing, ten persons are allowed.

I am therefore calling for a revising of that figure to maybe 25 persons, because with the suggested spacing each church can hold 20 or more persons. I know that these measures are only temporary, but God must be first and foremost. May God bless this nation!

Kennard King