When two megachurches in New Mexico decided to celebrate Christmas Eve by holding worship services, they were deemed “selfish” and hit with massive fines by their state government.
After videos and photographs of their mostly mask-less Christmas Eve services went viral, Calvary Church and Legacy Church were smacked with a $10,000 fine each for violating state orders from the health department.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-NM) announced right before the holiday season guidelines for the upcoming weeks. Her website instructs people to “not gather for the holidays with non-household members” and says the alternative is to meet with family via “a video chat service.” The state also instructed churches to operate only at 25 percent capacity.
Both Calvary and Legacy Church are being charged for violating the mask mandate and the capacity restrictions.
When the governor caught wind of what had happened in the churches, she immediately went into attack mode.
“These illegal and selfish gatherings will directly contribute to more suffering and illness in our state,” Gov. Grisham told NBC News. “These church leaders should reflect on the danger they’ve unleashed in their communities.”
Back in the spring, Legacy Church had tried to sue the state for the lockdown orders, but to no avail.
The governor also makes sneaky accusations at the pastors of the megachurches.
“We all wish this pandemic were over, but it’s not, and no pro-virus pastor may deem it so,” she told NBC.
Meanwhile, with her strict lockdowns, Gov. Grisham’s state still has managed to have over 141,000 coronavirus cases and over 2,000 deaths.
While it is a good idea to take smart precautions, fining a church $10,000 for celebrating Jesus’ birth is excessive, to say the least.