ERLC resources from the year of COVID-19

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. At that time, the novel coronavirus responsible for causing COVID-19 had spread from the Chinese city of Wuhan to every continent except Antarctica, infecting more than 121,000 people and causing 4,300 deaths. One year later, the virus has infected 118,908,424 people around the globe, killing 2,636,186—including 542,477 Americans.

Few of us had ever faced a crisis quite like this before, and were unsure how to address the myriad concerns that came with the pandemic. How do we decide whether to close our church building? How do we serve our neighbors who are serving from loneliness during a quarantine? How do we know we can trust vaccines that were created so rapidly?

Over the past year the ERLC has produced nearly two hundred resources to help families and churches answer questions like these. We’ve produced articles to help you stay informed about vaccines, identify potential threats to religious liberty, and learn creative ways to serve our neighbors. Here are some of the highlights from our coverage during the year of COVID-19.

This Week at the ERLC

What You Need to Read

Catherine Parks with How vaccines protect the vulnerable

In the early days of our nationwide quarantine, I heard someone say we were all encountering the same virus but we were experiencing it differently. I have thought of this often in the past year. For my family, quarantine meant making space for each other as my husband transitioned to working from home, and we began homeschooling our children. Our proximity to high-risk family members meant more caution and care on our part so that we could see them. But compared to many, our life change has been minimal. We have experienced the past year quite differently than have many others. For a lot of people, a return to a “normal” life is impossible without vaccination.

Jordan Wootten with The age of opinion and our need for quiet

As the Information Age has progressed, and each of us has been given a public platform from which to project our own voice, this information-rich age has been diluted. Profitable information, buried beneath the shouts and influencers and vapid words plastered on our screens, has become harder to locate. Social media, for all its personal and societal benefits, has served to replace our Information Age with the “age of opinion.”

Jared Kennedy and Scott James with How to talk to your kids about sickness

Even as we’re helping our children trust in God’s care for us amid this pandemic, we also have the opportunity to help them see that God calls us to care for others, too. With an infectious disease circulating in our communities, one way to look out for the good of others is to help slow the spread of infection by consistently practicing interventions such as masking and social distancing.

News From Capitol Hill

This week in Washington saw significant movement at all three branches of government, and the ERLC was involved in each debate.

On Monday, in an 8-1 victory for religious liberty and free speech, the Supreme Court ruled in Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski that governments can be held accountable for past violations of First Amendment freedoms. Here’s the ERLC’s explainer on the case, and our coverage of the top quotes from the justices' opinions. In response to the ruling, ERLC president Russell Moore noted that the decision is “significant not only for Chike Uzuegbunam, but for all those who might one day need to appeal to the courts for justice.” Moore continued:

“As we argued in our amicus brief to the Court, it is a fundamental harm for the state to infringe upon a person’s right to religion or free expression. Today’s ruling strengthens every American’s right to seek and obtain justice when those foundational rights are infringed.”

Then on Wednesday, the House passed the Senate-approved version of the $1.9T COVID stimulus legislation, the American Rescue Plan. President Biden signed the bill into law on Thursday. However, in a regrettable precedent-breaking move, this round of pandemic stimulus did not include the bipartisan Hyde Amendment. Russell Moore said in comments to Baptist Press:

“Whatever one thinks of the American Rescue Plan, the omission of critical conscience protections like the Hyde Amendment is wrong. All of us ought to agree that our country needs urgent action to deal with the public health and economic recovery in the wake of this pandemic. But why allow the abortion lobby to use this public health crisis to advance their divisive agenda?

I urge President Biden and members of Congress to return to the bipartisan agreement that all federal spending should respect the long-held belief that taxpayer resources should not be used for abortion. For nearly half a century, these amendments have saved lives and protected American consciences. In a moment when so much divides us, we should return to that point of consensus.”

Featured Podcasts

In an 8-1 victory for religious liberty, the Supreme Court ruled Monday in Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski that governments can be held accountable for past violations of First Amendment freedoms. Lawyer and free speech advocate Casey Mattox joins Jeff Pickering, Chelsea Patterson Sobolik, and Travis Wussow on Capitol Conversations to talk about the decision and why it matters.

On the ERLC Podcast, Josh, Lindsay, and Meagan reflect on the past year since the Coronavirus lockdown and Beth Moore’s announcement of her departure from Lifeway and the SBC. Lindsay gives a rundown of this week’s ERLC content, and Dr. Scott James joins the podcast for a conversation about life and ministry.

From The Public Square

Baptists and Religious Liberty: A Brief Introduction
Philip Meade

Baptists were a persecuted people. The religious setting in America during the 17th and 18th centuries was not, as we might assume, a celebration of religious diversity. The established churches of the colonies would persecute Baptists for a variety of reasons, including the practice of believer’s baptism.

Supreme Court sides with Christian students silenced on Georgia campus
ABC News

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday sided with a former Georgia college student who sued his school after it prevented him from expressing religious views in a free-speech zone on campus.

Colorado Bakery, In Court Again, Loses Attempt to Dismiss Transgender Discrimination Claim
Religion Clause

In Scardina v. Masterpiece Cakeshop, Inc.,(CO Dist. Ct., March 4, 2021), a Colorado state trial court dismissed Colorado Consumer Protection Act claims against a bakery that has been the subject of extensive litigation over its refusal to design wedding cakes for same-sex weddings.

Cash Alone Won’t Solve the Multifaceted Problems Associated With Child Poverty
Institute for Family Studies

Perhaps the most worrying implication of this new welfare will be its impact on single-parent families.