The Weekly is a highlight of the work the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is doing to strengthen you and our churches for God’s glory.

Explainer: How your church can receive a forgivable COVID-19 loan

What financial aid is available to churches and nonprofits affected by the COVID-19 crisis?

As part of the economic response to the COVID-19 crisis, Congress passed and President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The primary financial aid offered under this Act that is applicable to churches is the Paycheck Protection Program. This program authorizes up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to organizations to pay their employees during the ongoing pandemic.

(Note: For the sake of simplicity, this article explains how the process works for churches. But everything applicable to churches also applies to other 501c3 organizations, such as Christian private schools.)

What are the religious liberty concerns with this financial aid?

Russell Moore, ERLC president, recently addressed this question in his article, Do SBA-backed loans violate the separation of church and state? Moore wrote in response to several pastors who asked us the same question, “is a church or ministry taking advantage of newly approved government-backed Small Business Administration (SBA) loans wrong to do so? Would such a church be now a government-funded enterprise?” Moore does not think so and we’d encourage you to read his full article for why.

When can my church apply for this loan?

Churches can begin applying for the program on Friday, April 3. The deadline for submitting your application is June 30, 2020. However, because there is a funding cap, you should apply as soon as possible.

Important SBA Loan Update

Yesterday, the administration released an Interim Final Rule about this new program that included strong assurances about religious freedom, specifically with respect to hiring and religious practice. Further guidance on the details of the program for houses of worship and religious nonprofits is expected today.

“It is significant that SBA’s new regulations state that the religious freedom rights of houses of worship and faith-based nonprofits will be upheld in this new loan guarantee program,” said Travis Wussow, the ERLC's Vice President for Public Policy and General Counsel. “We look forward to further guidance from the administration, and we’re grateful for the hard work being done to ensure that this new program works for houses of worship.”

This is a fast moving situation and there will be more guidance released. You can find more information here:

• Interim Final Rule for SBA loan guidelines

• Baptist Press article 

This Week at the ERLC

• Russell Moore joined The World and Everything in it to talk about public health and religious liberty. He was also featured in Baptist Press and the Biblical Recorder.

• Dan Darling recorded a series of reflections with Crosswalk.com titled Christians in a Time of Coronavirus. He also had a timely reflection at InTouch on finding peace in the midst of a pandemic. 

• Phillip Bethancourt was on a panel called “Ministering in the Middle of a Pandemic.” 

• Trillia Newbell has a new book coming out with The Good Book Company titled “Beautifully Distinct.” 

• Travis Wussow was featured on a webinar with the Georgia Baptist Mission Board titled “The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) & Your Church.” He was also quoted in Baptist Press.

Helpful Resources On COVID-19

• Keep up with the ERLC’s latest resources on coronavirus at ERLC.com/COVID19
   
• Keep up with the latest CDC news and resources at coronavirus.gov
   
• From The White House | Coronavirus Guidelines for All Americans

What You Need to Read

• Scott James with Six ways you can pray for medical providers

Many of us are in the position of having to make significant, timely decisions based on incomplete and rapidly evolving data. For medical professionals who are trained to be evidence-based, this can be a nerve-wracking situation leading to uncertainty and fear. Please pray that we would be wise in how we respond to the evidence at hand, and discerning as we move forward to implement best practices for our patients and our communities.

• Lieryn Barnett on 3 suggestions for keeping your mental health in check during COVID-19

I pray that this hope brings you peace (John 14:27) and shines brightly to the rest of the dark world. Our living hope is the greatest witness to others in these times. Remain steadfast. I can’t tell you how long this season will last, but I can tell you that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He doesn’t guarantee tomorrow on earth, but he guarantees an eternity with him for those who believe that he sent his son to die for us (John 3:16).

• Russell Moore with Do SBA-backed loans violate the separation of church and state?

Over the past week, several pastors have asked me the same question: namely, is a church or ministry taking advantage of newly approved government-backed Small Business Administration (SBA) loans wrong to do so? Would such a church be now a government-funded enterprise? I do not think so, and here’s why.

News From Capitol Hill

In advance of a likely surge of COVID-19 patients, many states are drafting protocols for rationing care during the coronavirus outbreak, even while engaging private manufacturers and volunteer organizations in heroic ways to produce additional medical supplies and to help heal the sick.

There is a concern that such rationing protocols could lead to discrimination of people based on disability and age. For example, disability rights advocates have filed complaints arguing that rationing plans in Alabama and Washington state are discriminatory.

The ERLC policy team in Washington is engaged on these efforts and covered the work happening in Washington, D.C., to ensure equality of care in this recent explainer, What you need to know about anti-discrimination and COVID-19 care: HHS issues civil rights bulletin on medical care rationing.

Concern about care rationing was raised by members of Congress in a bipartisan, bicameral letter sent on March 25 to Secretary Alex Azar of the Department of Health and Human Services and Attorney General Bill Barr. The letter was led by Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D–N.Y.) and James Lankford (R–Okla.), and Reps. Jim Langevin (D–R.I.), and Chris Smith (R–N.J.). And on March 28, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued a strong and helpful bulletin that reaffirms the obligation of health care providers to abide by civil rights obligations during this national emergency.

Russell Moore praised the HHS bulletin:

“Even in a time of emergency, every human life is worth living. The temptation, in a time like this, is for some to seek to discriminate in health care against the elderly or those with disabilities. Such devaluing of human life is wrong. I am grateful that this guidance from the HHS Office of Civil Rights stands against such discrimination and for the dignity of every life. Our country has tremendous challenges ahead. We can meet them while still affirming the dignity of every human life, including the most vulnerable among us.”

The ERLC welcomes this guidance and urges states and healthcare providers to ensure their protocols and policies respect the fundamental principles of fairness, equality, and compassion. Each human life deeply matters to God and ought to be protected and treated equally under our laws.

Featured Podcasts

From The Public Square

Judges block 3 states from enforcing abortion bans pegged to pandemic
Alice Miranda Ollstein, Politico

Ohio, Iowa, Mississippi, Alabama and Oklahoma are among the other states that recently moved to suspend access.

Senators, activists urge FDA to revise blood donation policy for gay, bisexual men amid coronavirus pandemic
Mychael Schnell, ABC News

Democratic senators and gay rights advocates are calling on the federal government to loosen restrictions on blood donations from gay and bisexual men, citing the recent blood shortages caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic as a catalyst for change.

Southern Baptists donate 200,000+ masks, protective equipment items to medical workers
Brandon Elrod, Baptist Press

As COVID-19 cases continue to increase in the United States, many medical facilities have faced shortages of masks and other protective gear. In response, Southern Baptists have donated more than 228,000 sets of protective equipment to hospitals and healthcare workers in different states.

Do Government Restrictions on Larger Church Gathering Violate Religious Freedom?
Paul Marshall, Providence

Some have argued that such restrictions are a violation of religious freedom, while others have argued that they are responsible and legitimate government action. I believe that both positions are, or can be, correct.