A suggestion for an apology in the context of the covid era
A possible step towards truth and reconciliation
Dear Church Leaders
In the context of the covid era, here is a suggestion for an apology which might provide a stepping stone towards truth and reconciliation:
In 2020, many of us – and perhaps even all of us to some degree – fell into the sort of groupthink that we might have thought that we were immune to.
Although we have a Saviour who came to “free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death” (Hebrews 2:15), we pushed back very little against the narrative of fear fed relentlessly to us by the authorities and media. Instead we uncritically endorsed it all too readily.
Few of us gave much thought to the implications of what was happening because we bought into the fear narrative that the cost of covid was so high that other things mattered little in comparison – not least civil liberties, basic medical ethics and the welfare of the vulnerable. And we were slow to listen to those, including some in our congregation, who sought to raise concerns and questions about what was actually going on.
As a society, we readily compromised on the idea that civil liberties are inviolable, treating them instead as just another of the many things to be balanced, something which is actually in and of itself a gross misunderstanding of civil liberties.
In particular, we readily compromised on basic medical ethics and properly informed consent. No-one should ever feel pressurised into taking a medical test, or wearing a mask, or taking a vaccine with no long-term safety data. Irrespective of the circumstances. And no matter how supposedly safe and/or effective the intervention. In the covid hysteria, we lost sight of this. The breaches of medical ethics have been particularly egregious given both the inherent lack of long-term safety data and credible evidence that thousands of UK citizens have died as a result of the covid vaccines (and that many more have suffered grievous injury). But it is in any case deplorable to push any of the aforementioned measures on our children with a view to protecting adults.
We also readily compromised on the welfare of the vulnerable – people about whom God particularly cares. There is credible evidence that thousands of our elderly relatives died not primarily because of covid but because of changed treatment protocols involving the prescription of the drug midazolam (among others) and the withdrawal of antibiotics. Behind closed doors. While very few autopsies were being conducted. Husbands and wives and brothers and sisters and sons and daughters were unable to comfort their dying loved ones, and in some cases had to say their last goodbyes over a Zoom call. Domestic abuse and mental health problems have increased significantly. The effect on children – deprived of normal schooling at critical phases of their education – has been particularly marked, not least with rises in self-harming, eating disorders and suicidal ideation. And it is the poorest in society, few of whom are represented in a relatively wealth congregation like ours, who have been most affected.
The fact that our intentions were good (although inevitably tainted by sin) does not matter. What matters is holding to principles that are good, and standing up for civil liberties, basic medical ethics and the welfare of the vulnerable. And when we were put to the test, we fell a very long way short on that, both individually and collectively, with consequences that will afflict our society for many years to come.
As a church leadership, we are sorry for our part in what happened. We intend now to engage constructively with those in our congregation who have concerns and questions about what has really been going on, not least so that, whatever the coming years hold in store, we will not make the same mistakes again.
A couple of further thoughts:
Should not churches, and particularly their leaders, be among the first in society to begin to tell the truth and to acknowledge mistakes, particularly when children have been so badly treated? If churches and their leaders were among the slowest in society to do this in relation to covid, what sort of a witness would that be?
If churches told the truth about covid (among other things), what might be the consequences for the gospel? Consider for example this testimony from diagnostic pathologist Dr Clare Craig:
A thought-provoking three-minute music video looking back at the covid era:
(the above post was inspired by this from Mark Changizi)
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