COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. 鈥 The lights dimmed. Guitars thrummed. And a nine-piece band kicked off what amounted to a rock concert inside an amphitheater of a church. 鈥淪hout for joy to the Lord,鈥 one musician called out, .
Any such shout could release the coronavirus to congregants. With some 500 people singing along, though, any concern about a deadly virus circulating was hard to find other than the spaced-out chairs in the 6,000-person hall. Although Colorado鈥檚 governor had issued a statewide order days earlier mandating masks, hardly anyone at this service at New Life Church obeyed.
鈥淚鈥檓 finding this to be true at churches all over America: If they鈥檙e told they have to wear a mask, they鈥檒l stay home,鈥 said Brady Boyd, senior pastor of the 15,000-member New Life Church, a nondenominational megachurch that meets in five locations across the Pikes Peak region.
Long considered one of the country鈥檚 evangelical strongholds, Colorado Springs returned to church in ways both guarded and full of gusto after the state lifted lockdowns June 4 with limitations on how many people could gather. But as the county鈥檚 coronavirus cases and hospitalizations climb to their , many of the city鈥檚 largest and most well-known congregations remain undeterred 鈥 openly flouting the new statewide mask order and, in at least one instance, threatening not to stop holding in-person services again if ordered.
It all comes as church leaders across the nation navigate a growing set of political pressures: For months, President Donald Trump urged them to resume services despite pleadings from public health officials for caution and orders by some governors to stay home.
That pressure is particularly acute here at the base of Pikes Peak. Long the conservative bastion of Colorado, this city and surrounding El Paso County, home to about 720,000 people, overwhelmingly voted for Trump in 2016. (The county last voted for a Democratic candidate for president in 1964.)
The Republican sheriff has vowed not to enforce the that Democratic Gov. Jared Polis issued July 16. And several churches are as openly defiant.
But any indoor activities, such as worship services, pose a particularly high risk for coronavirus transmission even with masks, especially when they include singing, said Dr. Jonathan Samet, the Colorado School of Public Health鈥檚 dean. While coughing or sneezing can spread larger respiratory droplets, singing and talking release smaller infectious particles that can hang in the air and circulate in enclosed spaces.
鈥淭he circumstances of having large groups of people together without masks and doing things like singing is a setup that people talk about for superspreading events,鈥 Samet said.
Churchgoers sit on the lawn outside Grace and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado, during outdoor worship services on July 19. White circles painted on the grass indicate where people can sit to remain socially distanced at 6 feet apart.(Rachel Woolf for KHN)
In Arkansas, for example, at least after two people showed up at a church function with COVID symptoms. And , dozens of choral group members were infected after a single symptomatic person attended a 2陆-hour practice. Two people died.
The New Life Church, where at least 9 in 10 parishioners went without masks on the first Sunday after Colorado鈥檚 order began, was certainly not unique. Nearly all of the roughly 100 people gathered at Church for All Nations also skipped masks.
Pastor Mark Cowart kicked off his sermon there by questioning statements about masks from Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation鈥檚 top infectious disease expert with the National Institutes of Health.
鈥淲e are not the mask police,鈥 Cowart said, before warning state officials against trying to restrict their gatherings.
鈥淚f they come trying to tell us we can鈥檛 meet anymore, or we can鈥檛 sing, or we can鈥檛 have a Bible study anymore, that鈥檚 not going to go,鈥 Cowart said to applause at the nondenominational church. 鈥淕od does not want us to allow that to happen.鈥
Colorado health officials recently warned several counties that large worship services could be restricted if the rise in infections doesn鈥檛 ease. Average daily confirmed cases across the state more than doubled in July, rising from 215 a day in June to 451 as of last week, according to a state database.
The rise in COVID cases comes as residents disregard social-distancing guidelines. A recent report by the Colorado COVID-19 Modeling Group found that the share of Coloradans complying plummeted from .
Across the Pikes Peak region, dozens of pastors and parishioners described an intense and deeply spiritual desire to return to worship with their fellow believers. Meeting in person provides a unique opportunity to hug, to know they are not alone during such trying times.
鈥淭he church isn鈥檛 really a place 鈥 it鈥檚 a gathering of people,鈥 said Brian Bone, while meeting with a dozen others at Woodmen Valley Chapel, where masks were common on a recent visit. 鈥淲e get comfortable coming to a place we call church, but really it鈥檚 being with other people physically that鈥檚 important.鈥
Churchgoers sit on the lawn during outdoor worship services on July 19, at Grace and St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The church offers socially distant, outdoor Sunday worship services.(Rachel Woolf for KHN)
(From center left) Abigail Sena leads the procession as an acolyte, followed by Gary Darress, a deacon, and Claire Elser, a curate, during worship services on July 19.(Rachel Woolf for KHN)
And some ministers fear that not meeting regularly in person could lead to apathy among parishioners, causing them to drift away.
Not all congregations in Colorado Springs have been averse to the state鈥檚 new mask order. And the myriad approaches to reopening highlight the difficulty of placing a single label on churchgoers during the pandemic.
For the Rev. Jeremiah Williamson, masking up is the Christian thing to do.
鈥淎 lot of this stuff has been caught up in partisan politics, and I鈥檓 not interested in that,鈥 Williamson said. 鈥淚鈥檓 interested in keeping our people safe. We鈥檙e one of those churches that believes science.鈥
At Grace and St. Stephen鈥檚 Episcopal Church, Williamson has forsaken his pulpit for the front lawn. There, on a recent Sunday, dozens of church members sat in folding chairs spaced 6 feet apart, inside white circles painted on the grass. No congregants sang. Everyone wore masks.
Nearby on North Tejon Street, more parishioners sat in parked cars, listening with their radios as the service was broadcast via a shortwave transmitter.
And, before attending, everyone was urged to provide their names and phone numbers, in case someone tests positive and public health contact tracers need to find those who may have been exposed.
Bill and Carol Whittam (center) sit on the lawn outside Grace and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado, during worship services on July 19. Before attending, churchgoers are urged to sign up online and provide their names and phone numbers, in case someone tests positive and public health contact tracers need to track down people who may have been exposed.(Rachel Woolf for KHN)
鈥淚t just seems, as religious people, Christians, we would want to do our best for the common good, for the greater good,鈥 Williamson said.
Across town, Payne Chapel AME Church also has opted not to gather indoors out of concern for its predominantly Black congregation, because Blacks have been experiencing higher rates of hospitalization and death from the coronavirus. Church members recently met in their vehicles in the church鈥檚 parking lot, waving to one another through car windows and singing hymns together on a teleconference line.
For that 300-member African Methodist Episcopal church, to have met indoors also would have been 鈥渂etween ridiculous and stupid,鈥 said Pastor Leslie White, who heads the congregation.
However, Calvary Worship Center, which has a racially diverse congregation, is meeting indoors and not enforcing the mask order, even though two staff members were confirmed to have COVID-19. Instead, the church, led by a team of Black and white pastors, only recommends they be worn.
For Joshua Stephens, 29, the key to staying healthy is his faith.
The pandemic hit just as he wrapped up earning a degree from Charis Bible College, headquartered in Woodland Park. The local religious school received in early July from the Colorado Attorney General鈥檚 Office for hosting a conference with 300 to 500 people in violation of the state鈥檚 lockdown orders that limited gatherings to 175 people. Nevertheless, the college鈥檚 pastor had vowed to ignore the order.
Stephens, who attends Church for All Nations, said his belief in God informs his approach to the pandemic, after saying he was miraculously cured of cancer four years ago.
鈥淢y personal conviction is, I don鈥檛 get sick,鈥 said Stephens, who was not wearing a mask.
