The COVID-19 virus has spread from Asia to Europe and North America rapidly over the past week, bringing with it a level of panic and angst\u2014everywhere from the supermarket to the stock market to the local church\u2014not seen in recent times. The global tally is now more than 125,000 infected and more than 4,600 dead.<\/p>\n
Churches in Singapore, which Billy Graham affirmed as the \u201cAntioch of Asia,\u201d have already weathered the anxiety now sweeping the world. On February 7, the nation-state\u2019s government raised its national risk assessment level from Yellow to Orange, indicating \u201cmoderate disruption\u201d to daily life\u2014and in particular to large gatherings of people.<\/p>\n
March 7 marked the one-month anniversary of Singapore\u2014which has seen 166 cases but zero deaths\u2014going Orange. This means that for the past month, local churches\u2014which account for about 1 in 5 Singaporeans\u2014have been forced into an extended period of self-examination, reflection, and action.<\/p>\n
The process has not been straightforward, with a senior pastor afflicted with the coronavirus (and subsequently discharged), entire denominations suspending services, church-based preschools closing, and very public online disputes\u2014in a nation that strictly enforces religious harmony\u2014on how the situation is being handled by church leaders.<\/p>\n
To help churches in the United States, Italy, Brazil, and other countries now facing decisions that churches in China, Korea, and Singapore have been grappling with for weeks, here are seven lessons the Singaporean church has learned over the past month…<\/p>\n
Read it all<\/a>.<\/p>\n Attention church leaders and pastors around the world:<\/p>\n Here’s what your Singaporean counterparts want you to know about reacting to coronavirus https:\/\/t.co\/MXNH7QgWiG<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Christianity Today (@CTmagazine) March 12, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n