“The underlying cause of death is the condition that began the chain of events that ultimately led to the person’s death,” Anderson explained. He added, “In 92 percent of all deaths that mention Covid-19, Covid-19 is listed as the underlying cause of death.”
In other words, just because a death certificate lists other conditions besides COVID-19, that does not mean those other conditions caused the person’s death. Experts like Anderson and Dr. Anothony Fauci believe the new report underscores what health experts and scientists have cautioned about for a while now: If you have pre-existing health conditions, the coronavirus is more of a threat to you. The report also gives greater clarity as to which conditions may make a person more vulnerable to the virus.
So how many people in the U.S. have really died due to the coronavirus? As of Friday, September 4th, Johns Hopkins University reports that 187,052 deaths can be traced to COVID-19. The CDC is reporting that 172,884 death certificates list COVID-19 as the cause of death.
Other Pastors Agree Regulations Are Overkill
MacArthur certainly isn’t alone in his belief that the coronavirus isn’t as serious as most believe it is, nor that it warrants the lockdown to which the public has been subjected. Pastor Rob McCoy of Godspeak Calvary Chapel in nearby Ventura County, California, also believes the precautionary measures imposed on his church are superfluous. “There’s no emergency here. We haven’t had any cases. You have a one in one hundredth of one percent chance of dying from COVID in our county,” McCoy told Fox 11 as his church was embroiled in a legal battle with the county over its defiance of an indoor meeting ban. McCoy also emphasized that his church has experienced “zero cases” since they resumed meeting in person in May.
In California in particular, Governor Gavin Newsom issued an order temporarily banning singing, chanting, and group recitation in places of worship on July 1st. Despite evidence showing the virus is transmitted through respiratory droplets, several faith leaders took issue with Newsom’s order. The Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, says it’s “completely discriminatory” to ban singing in churches after allowing “tens of thousands to march in protest without wearing masks.” Sean Feucht, a Bethel Worship pastor who recently lost a primary election for Congress, launched a petition against the order, calling it an “unprecedented attack” on religious liberty.
On the other hand, some churches have not been as fortunate in evading the coronavirus as Grace Community Church and Godspeak Calvary Chapel have been. A number of outbreaks across the country have occurred, some of them believed to have originated at church meetings and revivals. An unfortunate reality of the virus is that ethnic minorities–Native Americans, African Americans, and Hispanics and Latinos in particular–appear to be suffering more deaths related to COVID-19 than other ethnicities. The Church of God in Christ denomination, a predominantly African American association of churches, has experienced a staggering number of losses among their senior leadership.
Still other church leaders are voluntarily keeping their churches online only for the time being, even though their respective states are allowing in-person worship services to resume, albeit with social distancing protocols in place. For Andy Stanley of North Point Church in Atlanta, Georgia, the reasoning to remain online is simple. It’s about resisting “the temptation to do what’s right for your church if it jeopardizes the health and wellbeing of the people in your community.”
Is MacArthur correct that there is no pandemic? A pandemic by definition is a disease that is prevalent over a country or the whole world. The statistics are clear on that issue, especially on a worldwide scale. According to WorldoMeter, at publication date, there are 26,678,991 cases in 215 countries around the world. Some 18,790,297 people have recovered, while 876,434 have died.
We are, indeed, in the middle of a pandemic.
