[[link removed]] T [[link removed]] he Time to Act Like A Community Is Now
[[link removed]] Adam R. TaylorThis isn’t the column I planned to write this week, but in light of the rapidly
developing COVID-19 crisis, it’s the column I that I felt needed to be written.
We all have a part to play in slowing the spread of the virus, and each of you
reading this has an important role to play by immediately adopting best
practices, including social distancing. As medical historian and epidemic expert
Howard Menkel recently put it, “Coronavirus is a socially transmitted disease,
and we all have a social contract to stop it. What binds us is a microbe – but
it also has the power to separate us. We’re a very small community, whether we
acknowledge it or not, and this proves it. The time to act like a community is
now.”

When Jim Wallis’ column about the impact of coronavirus on the most vulnerable
went live last week, the United States had identified just over 200 cases of
COVID-19, even though the illness caused by the coronavirus has been spreading
around the world for the past four months and this week was declared a global
pandemic by the World Health Organization. As we go live with this article
today, nearly 1,300 cases have been identified in the United States, and it very
much seems that this number will continue to climb rapidly in the days ahead.
It’s also important to understand that the actual number of people with COVID-19
right now is much, much higher than 1,300, given how little testing has actually
been done in the United States so far.

As I write this piece, my sons are not at school but home with me, because their
elementary school decided to start Spring Break three days early to slow
possible transmission of the virus and keep the community as safe as possible.
While this has caused some inconvenience, I realize just how fortunate I am — I
can work from home when needed and I have access to both sick leave and personal
days. This is not the case for the majority of workers in the country. Congress
will likely be voting soon on the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which
would provide urgently needed funding and provisions for free testing, three
weeks of paid sick leave, unemployment insurance, supplemental food stamps, and
nutritional support to kids who depend on school lunch. I’m hopeful and
prayerful that the White House and Congress can transcend politics in this
moment and pass this bill, because the virus knows no party and a bolder
response is overdue.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE [[link removed]]


[?subject=Read%20this%20Article%20at%20Sojourners&body=https%3A%2F%2Fsojo.net%2Farticles%2Fpeace-blasphemy-and-prophecy] Forward
[?subject=Read%20this%20Article%20at%20Sojourners&body=https%3A%2F%2Fsojo.net%2Farticles%2Fpeace-blasphemy-and-prophecy]
[[link removed]] Share
[[link removed]]ADVERTISEMENT

[[link removed]] Our Latest

Protect Your Mental Health While Practicing Social Distancing (by Nancy
Hightower)
[[link removed]]

Most people battling depression already feel isolated.

The Church's Role in a Pandemic (by Tiffany Firebaugh)
[[link removed]]

A pandemic of this magnitude is an opportunity to ask ourselves: What is the
true function of community?

Community Without Communing: Resources for Virtual Church (by Sandi Villarreal)
[[link removed]]

Sojourners reached out to those who have experience for their best words of
advice for how to shepherd their congregations during a health crisis.

How a Decade of Fasting from Meat Deepened My Christianity (by J. Dana Trent)
[[link removed]]

Fasting implores me to embrace humility.

ADVERTISEMENT
[[link removed]] From the Magazine

Why Faith Communities Are an Organic Part of HIV/AIDS Care (by Da'Shawn Mosley)
[[link removed]]

For Jesse Milan Jr., helping diverse communities end the HIV epidemic is a
matter of faith, hope, and love.

ADVERTISEMENTS
Support the No Ban Act [[link removed]]

We must all work to protect the rights of Americans of all religious
backgrounds. This benefits us all. The No Ban Act would repeal the Muslim ban
and prevent future administrations from issuing a similar one.

Tell the Senate to Reauthorize VAWA [[link removed]]

The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) became a law 25 years ago, providing
crucial protections for women and survivors of domestic violence. VAWA is now up
for reauthorization but is being held up in the Senate. Please ask your senators
to vote for this important bill.



DONATE
[[link removed]] SUBSCRIBE [[link removed]] Unsubscribe or update email preferences
[[link removed]]

Copyright © 2020 Sojourners, All rights reserved.
Sojourners | 408 C St. NE | Washington, DC 20002
Email: [email protected] [[email protected]] | Tel.: 202.328.8842