Where Should I Stand? COVID Shutdown vs. Gov’t Protests – by Steve Ary

The Shut Down

With churches having been mostly shut down, with some “non-essential-labeled” businesses closed, with vape shops and liquor stores becoming more crowded now than before, and with grocery and hardware stores so full that people are reaching across one another for the items they need (for their non-essential home improvement projects)… the stay-at-home orders don’t seem to be very effective, and certainly not fair and equal across the board.

The People

Some people are sticking responsibly to the stay-at-home orders and they remain in lock-down, perhaps fearful of contracting the Coronavirus, fearful that their immune systems could be compromised at any moment, and fearful that their friends and loved ones wouldn’t even be able to visit them should they end up in the hospital. Or worse… that they wouldn’t be able to say goodbye to their loved ones and that no one would even be able to attend their funeral.

Some can’t handle the isolation, and it is feeding their depression. Suicidal thoughts run through their heads at rapid rates. The mental torture is getting the best of them, and any moment could be their breaking point.

Some are prepping for the end-of-the-world scenario, just waiting for the authorities to turn their once-peaceful homes into the next Ruby Ridge or Waco showdown.

Some are working from home, still getting paid, are more stressed, and more overloaded with work now than before the shutdown. Some are trying to keep their small businesses afloat, and others have already lost their businesses forever.

Some are staying home comfortably, cashing in on sick leave or vacation pay, perhaps enjoying their time off work and working on their home improvement projects and flower gardens, while others are struggling to keep their utilities on, or to put food on the table, and don’t have enough money to make ends meet due to loss of income during the COVID-19 shutdown.

(I believe the majority of us already understand the general perspectives of those who are following the stay-at-home orders responsibly, so I will now share the possible perspectives of those who are protesting the shutdown.)

The Protests

And now, nationwide governmental protests have broken out. Some people feel that their constitutionally-protected rights are being taken away from them while the country is in quarantine. Americans are demanding that we can all return to work, that we can “Reopen America”. Many fear that the crashing economy will cost more lives than the virus itself.

Meanwhile, the Governor of Indiana is saying that the public protests “are not helping”. Mainstream media is deliberately downplaying the number of protestors in attendance. Liberals and Conservatives alike are bashing Trump supporters for protesting, claiming that they are spreading the virus. Pastors (we all love dearly, no offense if this is you) are claiming that public protesting is not Biblical because Jesus only protested the religious and legalistic Pharisees (omitting the public protests of Elijah, Micaiah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Micah, Amos, John the Baptist, and all of the Apostles). And the protestors themselves believe that they are showing more love to the American people than anyone by attempting to protect all of our rights from being destroyed, our economy from being destroyed, and from the ensuing chaos which may take more lives than the virus itself.

The Fence

Many people are “on the fence” about where to stand on these issues and what opinions and perspectives we should hold regarding the COVID-19 shutdown, the executive orders, and the governmental-overreach protests. And some who are usually vocal about injustices have been curiously silent throughout quarantine because they aren’t sure exactly what they believe, themselves… or they simply don’t want others to know which side of the fence they are on. If you are on the fence, this article should help you to solidify your stance.

The Questions

Some of the questions that people are asking are:

“Is the virus as dangerous as we are being told?”
“How serious are the risks if I must go out into public?”
“Are the mainstream-media-reported death toll numbers accurate?”
“Why are the numbers of usual deaths (heart disease, cancer, etc.) virtually nonexistent during COVID?”
“Why is it that nearly every death is being attributed to Coronavirus, even deaths associated with the premature birth of babies?”
“Is it possible that many of us already had the coronavirus back in January when people were sick for a month?”
“Why is social-distancing being enforced at store entrances but not throughout the shopping aisles?
“Why are the restrictions greater on churches than on abortion clinics, vape shops and hardware stores?”
“Should I agree or disagree with the ‘Reopen America’ governmental protests throughout the country?”
“Are the protestors putting themselves and others at risk by showing up en masse at governmental rallies?”
“Are my constitutionally-protected rights and freedoms being violated while I’m under a stay-at-home order?”
“Could these potential violations lead to further violations that effectively make our Constitution non-essential?”

The following should provide the knowledge and understanding we all need to determine upon which side of the fence should we stand.

The Constitution

According to the First Amendment; “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

The Interpretation

The bold, blue words in the above amendment are believed by some to be our government’s violations against us in that our free exercise of religion has been oppressed with the executive orders shutting down churches. “Abridging” free speech means to shorten, curtail, reduce, or deprive the people of free speech. Some believe that the executive orders, by way of restricted assembly, our free speech has been reduced. Due to the executive orders to “stay-at-home,” some believe that their right to peaceably assemble are being violated by the government. Protests have been the peoples’ way of petitioning the government since as long as there have been governments, and some believe that the government has restricted the petition for redress of grievances by way of executive order that the people must “stay-at-home”.

The Outbreaks

Incidentally, there is no provision in the Bill of Rights that states that, “in the case of a viral outbreak, ‘for your own good’ these rights may be taken from you at the government’s will” except, perhaps, after a declaration of martial law. In fact, the founding fathers knew what it was like to live through epidemics. In 1721, more than 14% of Boston’s citizens who had been infected with Smallpox died from the virus. In 1793, 16 years after the Constitution was drafted, our founding fathers had opportunity to amend it due to Yellow Fever which claimed the lives of around 5,000 Philadelphians while 17,000 fled the city. But there was no amendment added allowing the government to circumvent our Constitutional rights.

Later, in the 1800s, six strains of Cholera spread throughout the globe and between 1832 and 1866 it killed roughly 48,000 Americans. Since then viruses such as Scarlet Fever, Typhoid Fever, Spanish Flu, Diphtheria, Polio, Measles, Whooping Cough, and AIDS have impacted our nation, and even then, our Bill of Rights remained intact. No provisions were made to allow the government to subvert the rights of the people. Our Constitution was not circumvented by the powers that be. Vaccines were recommended, but not mandated. And the government remained in service to the people… not the other way around.

One individual recently posted on social media that Patrick Henry did not say, “Give me liberty or give me Coronavirus,” highlighting that our rights do not stop at risk of illness, but rather, our God-given and constitutionally-protected rights only end in the event of death. Anything short of that sentiment should be seen as either individual compromise or governmental tyranny.

Martial Law

Constitutionally-speaking, martial law has absolutely no legal provisions whatsoever. Stemming from the 1628 Petition of Right (an English constitutional document setting out specific individual protections against the state, reportedly of equal value to Magna Carta and the Bill of Rights 1689), “Common law knows no such thing as martial law, that is to say, martial law is not established by official authority of any sort, but arises from the nature of things, being the law of paramount necessity, leaving the civil courts to be the final judges of necessity.”

The only (loose) interpretation which might permit any form of martial law in the U.S. is the Article 1 Section 9 reference to the suspension of Habeus Corpus (a writ requiring a person under arrest to be brought before a judge or into court). If the general public has not been arrested, the suspension of Habeus Corpus cannot be legally implemented. Additionally, martial rule can never exist where the courts are open, and in proper and unobstructed exercise of their jurisdiction (for the arrested persons only).

Even then, the powers imposed upon us currently (stay-at-home orders) cannot be legally or Constitutionally imposed upon us without a declaration of martial law from the President or from each state’s Governor. Any such powers imposed upon the American people without the declaration of martial law are merely suggestions which cannot legally be enforced. Any enforcement thereof is a direct violation of the Constitution of the United States against the American people. And even then, should martial law be imposed by some loose interpretation of the Constitution, suspending Habeus Corpus cannot legally be imposed except upon those who have been arrested in the cases of a rebellion or invasion.

The Rhetoric

During the COVID-19 shutdown, everything is rhetorical and nothing is unmolested truth. The banter of the armchair “experts” from doctors and dieticians to pastors and politicians, from talking heads and conspiracy theorists to scientists and social activists, is nothing but gossip and guessing because no one knows all the details of everything during this perplexing virus and COVID shutdown. Between all the information, the misinformation, the disinformation and the deliberate confusion, deception, and falsification, everyone… and I mean, everyone… seems to be displaying their “expertise” over the situation.

Followers are throwing their proverbial hands up in the air in comical cynicism, laughing at every piece of information that comes their way while leaders grasp to speak something solid to their followers, but their “solid truth” is only an educated guess based on crumbling foundations which seem to change with the direction of the wind.

The fact is… there are no facts. There is only what we are told. But if there were facts, the American people would not be privy to them, at least… not right now. Perhaps later, when all the cards are on the table and our hindsight is better than 20/20. Our questions will not likely be answered with certainty in this season, so we must examine ourselves and our own behaviors while we are stewing in this pressure cooker of confusion. Are we assisting in the overspreading of misinformation as we share and share away every partial truth on social media? Are we a pawn in this game of confusion as we spread popular falsities like a… well… a virus?

Be careful upon which foundation you rest your perspective during this season of guessing… and rely on solid truths that you know and have always known. Don’t treat people who have a differing opinion than your own as if they are wrong and you are right, because, I can assure you, we are all wrong in some way, shape, or form.

In Truth, Jesus Gave Us the Answer

No matter where people stand on the issues… whether they are:

• isolating at home, protecting themselves or their loved ones
• depressed and suicidal in their isolation
• protecting their own compromised immune systems
• prepping to protect themselves and those they love
• working from home, trying to make ends meet
• enjoying their first staycation they’ve had in years
• trying to save their business, or already lost their business
• scrambling to keep their utilities on and food on the table
• thinking this whole thing is a sham
• standing up for our Constitutional Rights
• protesting outside the Governor’s mansion

…love them where they are.

Don’t bash them. Love them.

Some believe they are showing the most love to others by staying home to prevent the virus from spreading. Some believe they are showing the most love to others by working at places considered essential. Some believe they are showing the most love to others by having virtual church services online. Some believe they are showing the most love to others by prepping for the worst case scenario. Some believe they are showing the most love to others by protesting for the rights of everyone. Who are we to judge that one person’s way to love others is not the right way to love others?

This season is uncertain. The facts are uncertain. What we are being told is not 100% truth. Spreading partial truths is the same as spreading lies. Both sides of the fence are partly right and both sides of the fence are partly wrong. Get off the fence and stand on the only obvious solid ground – to love one another as ourselves regardless of where they stand.

Don’t oppose those who may have a different partial truth than yours. Everyone has a reason for their perspective, and no one is required to give their reasons. So, we shouldn’t polarize those with whom we disagree. Let’s give them the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps they are the ones who are mostly right… while we are mostly wrong, and we just don’t know it yet.

The answer is simple. We must LOVE the people no matter where they stand. And we must check ourselves for pride before sharing our opinions as absolute truth.