One of the lessons learned by Rev. Derek Macleod during the Covid-19 pandemic was how to be effective without being active. Macleod, pastor at St. Andrews-Covenant, knows what to do after a hurricane. Once the wind and rain pass, it’s roll up your sleeves and start to rebuild.
“Whatever worries you have, you get to work those out,” Macleod said. “This is an entirely different kind of disaster.”
Macleod’s congregation is lucky. They haven’t experienced any cases of Covid, but the pandemic hasn’t eased the crises of life — marriage problems, mental health issues, addiction.
“There is always a need for assurance and prayer,” Macleod said. “The one thing that is always our bedrock is our relationships. How do we live out that relationship?”
For some, there’s a void only the faith-based community can fill. There is something different when help comes not from a nonprofit or a government agency, but from someone who appears to represent the best aspects of religion. And, for many, there is a sense of peace in having faith in something bigger than yourself. For those, the faith-based community best embodies that man can live up to the lofty ideals set out in our holy books and, at the same time, get down to actually helping one another by offering food, shelter, or just a little prayer.
“I think we have a permission to be involved and care about your life without you wondering what is our angle,” Macleod said. “We care about you because we know God does.”
A nexus point for faith-based assistance is One Christian Network.
Emma Baltezore heads up One Christian Network , a loose collection of Christian churches that keep open communication lines and partner with local government and nonprofit organizations to serve the community ranging from substance abuse counseling to helping a single mother get her car fixed. Baltezore said she gets calls daily asking for help and uses a program that shows the caller’s location and where the closest church is located that can address the need.
“There is not one entity that can do it alone that can truly resource our city by being god’s hands and feet,” Baltezore said. “The needs are so vast. There are so many interconnected needs.”
Started in 2014, the network came into its own during Hurricane Florence when all the churches collaborated to fill gaps in the recovery effort.
“This pandemic is going to be a pivotal moment for churches to rally together but it is still a work in progress,” she said. “A lot of times churches, even some on the same street, don’t know what each is doing.”
Baltezore said the network is setting up a prayer call center.
“The county has their call line, but this would be specifically for the spiritual part,” she said.
That kind of connection is an integral part of the faith-based community. Temple of Israel Rabbi Emily Losben-Ostrov — Wilmington’s only full time rabbi — said connection was her main goal. The synagogue runs programming and services six days a week and even celebrated holidays.
“We’re doing everything we can to keep people connected,” she said. Keep people spiritually connected.”
Losben-Ostrov said she is working more now than ever the only difference is she is doing the work in her socks.
“I feel like I’m available the minute I wake up and pick up my phone to when I go to bed with my phone in my hand,” she said.
Losben-Ostrov understands what the virus means. She lost a friend to Covid-19 and had to attend his funeral via Zoom. Now more than ever, people are looking to faith-based organizations to provide community.
“Faith is something that is calming and centering force in someone’s life,” she said. “For us as Jews, there is a big part of being part of a community. How do you create that Jewish community from afar? That’s why I might be tired. But I’m grateful.”
Macleod, too, is doing a lot of comforting online or on the phones. Social media has also been an outreach not only linking people with services, but offering a little comfort.
“It is hard to tell someone they are not alone when you’re six feet away with a mask on,” Macleod said. “I’ve been so impressed with people doing their best.”
He told the story of a member of his church — Caitlin Andrews — who sang for the church’s musical moment on Facebook. Lying on the floor, Andrews sang an aria from Mozart’s Don Giovanni as her son — dressed in his pajamas and rain boots — rested on her chest. As she sings, Andrews rubbed his back, comforting him with both her voice and touch.
“It is perfect,” Mcleod said, remembering the video. “It is about how we do what we do in the midst of it all. It just feels holy in the midst of it all.”
Kevin Maurer is a journalist and author. He is currently the Director of Community Engagement at Cape Fear Collective.
