SALT LAKE CITY — The Rev. Oscar T. Moses, the pastor at Calvary Baptist Church, has been stuck in Chicago for close to a month now.
Pastor Moses, who replaced the retiring Pastor France A. Davis in December, returned to Chicago several weeks ago to help his wife pack, assist with an aging family member living with them, prepare their home for sale and tie up loose ends. But canceled flights and travel restrictions have prevented his return to Utah. Aware of his plight, leaders at Calvary Baptist recommended he remain in the Midwest until COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, which put the pastor at ease.
But thanks to technology, the work of the church carries on, and is even reaching a larger audience. Pastor Moses has noticed more people are streaming his virtual Bible study and prayer devotionals, including some who are not that “tech savvy,” he said.
“God has moved the church into the 21st century,” Pastor Moses said. “I’m certainly learning how to use technology. I’m now a video producer.”
Increased reach through technology is one of several positive things happening for Calvary Baptist and other Utah faith communities amid the coronavirus pandemic. Religious leaders are doing their best to care for sick and dying members of their flocks. They are also noticing a multitude of kind deeds and other Christian acts during these unsettling times.
“This is the church’s finest hour,” Pastor Moses said. “It seems that the church always seems to shine the best in crisis. We’re doing things the Lord has already told us to do even more. People are praying more, they are looking after others more, more concerned about the poor. People are more thirsty to learn more about God and how God is navigating us through the season.”
Although it is difficult for Catholics to not go to Mass and receive the Eucharist (partaking of the sacramental bread and wine), the Rev. John Evans of St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Cottonwood Heights is reporting that more people are attending online Mass than ever before. The average Easter Mass attendance is around 1,200, but this year’s live service was streamed to almost double that number.
“More and more people are attending the daily Mass — hundreds. Normally we would see 15-30 people attend a daily weekday Mass,” Father Evans wrote in an email. “People have been commenting, sending me emails and phone calls expressing what a blessing the live streaming has been to them, how they are attending and looking forward to the opportunity to go to Mass and be united with others in the Body of Christ, albeit from many different homes and other places.”
The faith leader asked parishioners to email him their thoughts on how they are keeping God at the center of their lives. He shared some of their responses at the end of recent services.
“I’m trying to help the parishioners to inspire one another and be encouraged by real-life examples from people they know,” Father Evans wrote. “We are praying as a community for particular people we know, and for many we do not know. We’ve had community members with COVID-19 and some of their family members hospitalized, in ICU, and struggling. We’ve also have had some babies born, and other good news to announce. Some of those God-centered comments speak of looking at God’s grace and blessing in the midst of pandemic realities.”
Because the COVID-19 community health restrictions, visitors are not permitted to visit patients. Ministry teams at Calvary Baptist and St. Thomas More Catholic Church are staying in touch as well as they can, calling to check in, visit and offer prayers.
“That’s the best we can do right now with social distancing,” Pastor Moses said.
Father Evans, along with Father Joseph Delka, the parochial vicar of the Cathedral of the Madeleine, have worn masks, gloves and taken every precaution before entering home hospice or assisted living centers to visit parishioners, administer the sacrament of anointing the sick and last rites.
“I’m with the beloved people when they are dying and close to death. I haven’t encountered a center turning me away, they have been generous in allowing the person and families to celebrate the sacraments,” Father Evans wrote. “These are moments of God’s grace that can bring comfort and spiritual peace to the patients that are conscious, the families, and even the staff at times.”
These visits have been challenging in some ways, Father Delka wrote in an email.
“It’s an odd feeling to come into a critical moment in someone’s life dressed up like that and not being able to greet members of the family with a handshake, or to hold the hand of a person about to die,” he wrote. “Still, I was able to give the last rites and pray for them with their families that they be made ready to meet the Lord.”
In one of those cases the family contacted him a week later for the funeral. It was strange to see everyone spread out, but the small service was meaningful to the family, he said.
“In all of this it is a great sign to me and to others that the Lord is still at work despite the difficult circumstances,” Father Delka said.
St. Thomas More provided “substantial help” to a young family from out of state staying at Primary Children’s Hospital. Sadly, their child did not survive.
“We prayed with them and gave material support to ease their immediate needs,” Father Evans said. “There are more stories like these.”
To help care for individuals and families in need, churches like the Cathedral of the Madeleine and St. Thomas More have mobilized volunteers to buy groceries at the store or pick up prescriptions at a pharmacy, along with other items, and deliver them to vulnerable people.
St. Thomas More recently organized a food drive that collected 1,500 pounds of food for the Utah Food Bank.
Father Delka praised a man named Darren Williams for his efforts to keep the Cathedral’s Good Samaritan Food Program going despite a lack of volunteers.
“The blessings come in many shapes and sizes, and from unexpected places. The Lord is with us and is very much at work inspiring great acts of charity,” Father Delka wrote. “We priests have also received many acts of kindness from parishioners, from dinner deliveries to homemade masks to notes of support.”