A California church, which planned to hold Palm Sunday services at its rented sanctuary despite a state-mandated stay-at-home order due to the coronavirus, was thwarted when its landlord—another church—changed the locks to prevent entry. The landlord, Bethel Open Bible Church, took action after the San Joaquin County Public Health Officer posted a notice at the house of worship on April 3 ordering the facility and parking lot be closed. The letter to Pastor Michael Allison of Bethel Open Bible Church noted that its tenant, Cross Culture Christian Center, was continuing to meet despite the emergency order. Doing so, the letter warned, was a misdemeanor that could bring a fine or imprisonment. Bethel Open Bible Church, located in California’s Central Valley, had already heeded the emergency order on March 15 when it stopped holding its own services. “It is our hope that others in our community, whether of a faith background or not would continue to follow the Governor’s orders and that of the California State Public Health Officer,” Allison told the Los Angeles Times . “When the Public Health Officer issued an ‘Order Prohibiting Public Assembly’ we immediately took action to lock the building so that it would not […]
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