Bishop Lowry Offers a Video Update on the CTC's Response to COVID-19
Aug. 16, 2021
If you read or watched the news, been on social media or even overheard a conversation at the store in early August 2021, you are likely aware that the secular response to the surge in COVID cases in Texas caused by the Delta variant has shifted from the medical to the extremely political. While the legal actions between state, county and local government agencies makes for excellent headlines, and the too often, too-heated masking and vaccination debates on social media continue to make places like Facebook and Twitter into online battlefields, Bishop Lowry is adamant that we MUST NOT let these things seep into our churches and faith communities. As such, Bishop Lowry’s first act upon returning from his summer renewal leave was to record the following message and share his thoughts and update on the CTCs response to the ongoing pandemic.
Please click on the player below to view Bishop Lowry’s latest message to the Central Texas Conference regarding on our ongoing COVID-19 response. To download, click the link below the player.
In the brief video above, Bishop Lowry highlights…
- that our mission isn’t just to make disciples of Jesus, but also to BE disciples of the Risen Lord and show mercy and kindness to each other, to bring about peace and to react first and foremost in love to any given situation.
- his conviction that even with the recent surge, CTC churches should reopen in some capacity to in-person worship and ministries wherever possible. However, he stresses that now more than ever, this should be done safely and with the best interest of those at risk firmly in mind;
- the current CDC guidance states that even those who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 should return to wearing masks indoors in parts of the U.S. where the coronavirus is surging – which, according the latest tracking information now includes every Central Texas Conference county except for Stephens county;
- the position of the Central Texas Conference as it relates to how to best respond to COVID-19 remains unchanged and that the clergy and lay leadership of each local church is best equipped to make decisions on how to appropriately respond to the pandemic;
- and more.