California churches this weekend rallied against Gov. Gavin Newsom’s worship restrictions as many pastors continue to disregard state-imposed bans on singing and indoor services.
A coalition of churches, led by Pentecostal pastor Tamara Bennett, on Saturday gathered in front of Sacramento’s California state Capitol building to show support for reopening churches. A series of pastors rallied to the crowd, while volunteers handed out masks branded with prayer messages. A socially distanced praise band played gospel songs.
Bennett said that the rally was intended to be apolitical, but to express that church communities are “essential” to California life.
“We’re just bringing believers together,” she said. “We’re going to pray, and we’re going to worship.”
Of the several hundred people who attended the rally, however, many pushed more partisan messages, according to the Sacramento Bee. Other groups rallied in the state capital this weekend, criticizing Newsom for restricting churches after opening them in May. Many of the people involved in the protests came from Southern California to make the case that indoor worship is essential.
The protests in Sacramento mark the second weekend of demonstrations since Newsom’s ban on indoor worship went into effect in mid-July. In Fresno last weekend, Christians gathered in the city’s downtown to play worship music and protest church closures. A similar event occurred on Sunday in San Diego, where more than 1,000 people worshiped on the beach in protest of Newsom.
“We have a right just as much to assemble and worship, and it’s foundational in the Constitution,” said Sean Feucht, the activist who organized both prayer events.
Newsom’s bans, instituted alongside a resurgence in coronavirus cases, drew immediate criticism from Christians when they were released. Three churches sued, arguing that the restrictions were unfair to churches because Newsom had not placed restrictions on the large protests for racial justice that happened earlier this summer.
“This ban is clearly targeted at religion,” said Jordan Sekulow, executive director of the American Center for Law and Justice, one of the nonprofit law firms representing the churches. “It is clearly a violation of the First Amendment and a direct violation of religious liberty.”
