We need places of worship and fellowship more than ever during this time

Oct 03, 2021 Letters

Dear Editor,

The “new normal” … this is said almost like a dirty word these days, is it really a bad thing? Was everything in our world, in our lives, in our churches, perfect before this virus took hold? That’s not the way I remember it. We are all living in a time of great uncertainty.
Editor, where are you connecting with others during this time? Traditionally, in times of crisis or distress, the church is the place that flings wide its doors and encourages the community to gather. Church is the place that invites you in when you don’t feel safe, or feel like you don’t belong anywhere else. For those of us who regularly attend a church, it is the place where we find family, connection, comfort and encouragement.
As a Christian, the majority of my community is found in church. Church is the place where I find peace, where I enjoy deep, meaningful conversations, where I explore the bigger questions of life with others, and where I am re-charged and filled up with love by the people and my God.
All of us still need connection. Many of us need to feel grounded. Where can we go to find meaning? As I write, it is Friday night‬ and I’m sitting in the Giftland Mall parking lot, and all of Guyana is at the mall. The food court is full. The stores are full. The parking lot is full. The movie theater is full. The bars, rum-shops and the dance halls are full. The casino is full. There are crowds of people everywhere.
However, these days, the only place in Guyana that is not full is the Christian church. As a matter of fact, the Catholic Church has suspended all church services. On the other hand, even though my church is open, there are few people attending. What interesting times we are living in! Even though we are going through a pandemic where hundreds of people are dying, the rum shops are full, and the church is empty.
How do you explain this? How come the non-religious people are not afraid to go out and have a fun time, while the religious people are scared to go to church? Attending church is so important to me that when I was deployed to Iraq, I never missed a church service even though going to church made me vulnerable to being blown up, shot, or killed. I can remember that there were times when I was in church in Iraq, I could hear explosions from bombs nearby, and it never deterred me from going to church, because the church is my lifeline. Hearing from God is more important to me than the fear of dying. Editor, since the bombardments and bombings l witnessed in Iraq didn’t stop me from attending church, COVID-19 will not stop me from attending church. Of course, I am fully vaccinated, and I encourage everyone to be vaccinated and keep attending church.
It’s my opinion that more than any other time now is the time to go to church. Now is the time to fellowship, pray with and encourage each other. Now is the time to go to church to hear from God. Now is the time that we need God more than any other time. Now is the time we need a word of encouragement from God. The church was created by God for such a time as this. During a pandemic we should be going to church more, because we need God more. Now is the time to turn to God, and not away from him. Now is the time, we need to be comforted by God. Now is the time to keep the church open. Now is the time to go to church.

Anthony Pantlitz

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