At a news conference on Nov. 17, Premier Tim Houston was “absolutely appalled” and “disgusted.”
The pastor of Gospel Light Baptist Church in Amherst had given a sermon, broadcast over Facebook, where he wasn’t perceived as adequately contrite over an outbreak of COVID-19 in northern Nova Scotia. Houston and Dr. Robert Strang, the province's chief medical officer of health, blamed the outbreak on a week of prayer and planning that saw about 100 people gather in the church from Oct. 25 to 29.
"This whole event has been hard, there's no doubt about that," Pastor Robert Smith had told his congregation in November.
"It's been hard on me, not just emotionally, but physically. But we still have to glorify God … it's a choice each of us have to make. … People are trying to shame us, but I will never be ashamed of what I do for Christ. Is the thing unfortunate? Yes, but I'm not ashamed because I did what I'm 110 per cent sure Christ wanted me to do."
Also on Nov. 17, a news release issued by the province announced a $2,477 fine for Smith and placed blame on the religious gathering for 31 residents and 10 staff testing positive for COVID-19 and three deaths at the East Cumberland Lodge.
Media outlets jumped on it with headlines such as: “Totally disgusting”: Premier Tim Houston condemns comments from pastor saying God “wanted” the current outbreak that started at his church and has killed 3 people.
But was that what Pastor Smith told his congregation?
'An increase in fear and anxiety'
In the communal outpouring of blame that followed, there was little discussion of the importance of gathering as a faith community to people with certain beliefs.
The news release announcing the fine said it was for violating public health protocols. But it didn’t say how those protocols were violated.
While the premier mentioned the church did not require proof of vaccination at the door, public health protocols don’t require proof of vaccination for daily church services (which organizers say was the case).
Katherine Fierlbeck, a Dalhousie University political science professor who specializes in health issues, warns that beyond losing sight of details of an alleged transgression during COVID-19, we as a society have become quicker to blame and shame and less willing to listen to alternative viewpoints.
“We tend to think of ourselves as more civilized and progressive now when in fact the opposite might be true,” Fierlbeck.
“What happens when you have a war or a serious public health issue is you have an increase in fear and anxiety and frustration, This is when people feel most threatened.”
Those feelings can find a release in the form of moral outrage at groups or individuals who are perceived as posing a threat to society.
It’s a coarsening of discourse she’s seen develop as people move from face-to-face discussion with neighbours at shared meeting places to social media where all the sides of any debate gravitate toward echo chambers of shared opinion.
“With a homogenous group that holds particular values not held by the wider population, it is very easy for the wider population to make judgment,” said Fierlbeck.
“It becomes not just about the actions but about the wider values that the group holds.”
Called out by premier, media
A pastor with a southern accent leading an evangelical church in a small, no-so-wealthy industrial town gets called out by the premier, media and public health for not asking for proof of vaccination of the 100 people who came from around the province.
But when St. Francis Xavier University’s administration invites parents from across North America for an X-Ring ceremony and convocation that saw 2,000 people attend in person and sparks a larger COVID-19 outbreak, it gets defended by the powers that be.
Asked at Friday’s COVID-19 briefing about the university continuing to send student teachers into Antigonish area public schools and student nurses into medical facilities for three days after the first positive COVID-19 test came back, chief medical officer of health Robert Strang responded, “We only became aware on Monday into Tuesday, by Wednesday things were closed down. I think those appropriate steps were done in a timely manner. It takes some time for an outbreak investigation to unfold.”
Asked about the video of a large group of people drinking and dancing unmasked close to the stage as a band played on campus during the St. F.X. student union organized Supersub event, Strang responded, “Two of the videos I have seen fit into that grey zone, people are allowed to have drinks in their hands.”
A representative of the band that played at that event, Signal Hill, confirmed that at least one member tested positive for COVID-19 after the event. But that positive test didn’t come until after the band played two days later at the Lower Deck Pub on Upper Water Street in Halifax, which is now also listed as an exposure site.
'Principled and thoughtful reasons for non-compliance'
The Gospel Light event was condemned by Premier Houston in part because masks allegedly weren’t worn by those meeting to pray and discuss their faith.
The participants at the Gospel Light event weren’t drinking, unlike those at the St. F.X. student union Supersub, which made their non-mask wearing a violation of public health protocols.
“I think by blaming and shaming there is an assumption that there is black and white, that these people are bad, we are being virtuous, there is an indignation that those being scofflaws are not protecting the safety of those that are compliant,” said Fierlbeck.
“… what gets lost is that there can be principled or thoughtful reasons for non-compliance that people don’t take into account when blaming and shaming.”
Fierlbeck cautions against blaming our leaders for doing something we want from them, something that is effective toward the goal of getting more people to comply with public health protocols, get vaccinated and thereby limit the spread of COVID-19.
“It is logical for public health to take advantage of this, but unfortunately the science in the area of COVID is inchoate, there is limited and changing data and a lot of policy measures are taken from extrapolation or inference,” said Fierlbeck.
“I’m not putting blame on public health for doing what they probably ought to do. At the same time, we need to recognize that there is a large degree of uncertainty.”
The Omicron variant is spreading quickly and exhaustion is setting in with the prospect of a third pandemic winter. Fierlbeck's advice is that we check ourselves when we lean toward moral outrage and champion it from our leaders. That we consider the anger's source in ourselves and seek to understand rather than project viewpoints on others.
While blaming and shaming may be effective toward a laudable goal of protecting society, it does cause harm.
A clergy involved with the Oct. 25-29 meetings (not Pastor Smith) in Amherst told The Chronicle Herald that members of his congregation had been threatened and harassed around their community and in their workplaces.
He spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear that his words would result in his congregation being further targeted as the public focus moves to the latest outbreak, which has so far spread to two seniors facilities, the Paqtnkek First Nation and has resulted in significantly decreased attendance at three public schools in Antigonish and Guysborough that have had exposures.
Asked about any double standard with how his church versus St. F.X. had been treated he cautioned that two wrongs don’t make a right.
“Finger-pointing – it does irreparable harm, causes unbelievable damage,” he said.
“…Perhaps we should end the public shaming, finger-pointing and misinformation surrounding COVID, start trusting people again, and give someone the benefit of the doubt until all the facts are gathered.”
