Did you get the COVID vaccination?

[PeterG]

Nobody in the plain world cares about covid anymore unless they’re a hypochondriac.

If you're afraid of plain people having funerals, yes, you're a hypochondriac.

While I do care about COVID, I am not afraid of plain people having funerals, so it's still unclear to me whether or not you consider me a hypochondriac. But thank you for answering my question. No need to clarify further, as far as I'm concerned.

You continue to miss the point of what I've been saying. I am therefore not interested in continuing the conversation, except to point out that not only have I been observing "the lived cultural experience," I've been experiencing it myself just as much as any other conservative Anabaptist.

[PeterG]

Also, I said that everyone knew it would be a super spreader event. Actually, I am sure there were many people there who simply didn't consider it to be a problem, or whatever.
So it would be more accurate to say that some of us fully expected it to be a super spreader event. Because of that possibility, my wife and I left our children at home. We had planned to minimize contact etc., but really there was no way to really do that. You go in and sit right with everyone else, and stay there the full service, and then you go outside. Just like normal.
We knew it was in the community, but I felt that it was more important to be there. I figured that I already had Covid once, so I wasn't too worried.

Thanks for clarifying this, and sorry if I read too much into what you said earlier. Your clarification gives a much different picture, and the situation makes a lot more sense to me now.

[Josh]

You continue to miss the point of what I've been saying. I am therefore not interested in continuing the conversation, except to point out that not only have I been observing "the lived cultural experience," I've been experiencing it myself just as much as any other conservative Anabaptist.

Okay, what's your point?

You seem to be objecting to how plain people are conducting themselves with regards to funerals and other gatherings.

What is your basis for this, and why do you think they should listen to you to do things differently?

[PeterG]

You continue to miss the point of what I've been saying. I am therefore not interested in continuing the conversation, except to point out that not only have I been observing "the lived cultural experience," I've been experiencing it myself just as much as any other conservative Anabaptist.

Okay, what's your point?

You seem to be objecting to how plain people are conducting themselves with regards to funerals and other gatherings.

What is your basis for this, and why do you think they should listen to you to do things differently?

As I've said before, until you acknowledge your pattern of misrepresenting others, there's little point in trying to converse with you.

[RZehr]

Sadly, I was just informed this afternoon that another person at that same church (my mother church) passed away this afternoon. Not from Covid. I expect to go to that funeral as well, and don’t expect there to be any Covid precautions taken. But I suppose I may be surprised. This time I don’t know if any active Covid cases in that community at this moment.

[Josh]

As I've said before, until you acknowledge your pattern of misrepresenting others, there's little point in trying to converse with you.

In other words, instead of addressing the main point, resort to personal attacks and attacks on my character.

Here's what you said about that funeral:

Pretty much everyone knew it was going to be a “super spreader event” beforehand, and no precautions were taken.

This is just mind-boggling to me...

How many people died from COVID after this?

I don't know, and neither do you. This is a disease that spreads exponentially.

But let's just assume that COVID is roughly equal in severity to the seasonal flu. (I doubt this very much, but for the sake of discussion...) I find it hard to comprehend how people could go ahead with something that they realize will result in the spread of a flu equivalent through an entire community, and that the disease would be similarly spread to other communities also.

Maybe nobody died. Maybe "only" a couple of people were hospitalized. But maybe works both ways. And at the very least a large number of people from multiple communities caught and spread something like the flu (assuming, again, that COVID and the flu are equally severe).

Josh, you completely missed my point. Also, did you intend to refer to me as a hypochondriac?

I'm not so confounded that the funerals were held. It's more that, as RZehr said, no precautions were taken. It's not an all-or-nothing thing.

For the record, I don't know if you're a hypochondriac or not. Generally speaking, most plain people are not concerned at all about attending funerals. They don't think there need to be "precautions", although there were lots of precautions last year. This year, things are very much back to normal (unless nursing homes are involved).

I will try to understand your position above and not put words in your mouth; here is what you seem to be saying:

"It is mind-boggling to me that a normal funeral was held."

"I'm confounded that precautions weren't taken at that funeral."

"I am very disappointed and do not approve of people going ahead with a funeral that could spread something like the flu."

If that is not what you meant by your above words, please correct me.

[Josh]

Sadly, I was just informed this afternoon that another person at that same church (my mother church) passed away this afternoon. Not from Covid. I expect to go to that funeral as well, and don’t expect there to be any Covid precautions taken. But I suppose I may be surprised. This time I don’t know if any active Covid cases in that community at this moment.

Seeing as you're vaccinated (I assume fully vaccinated), how much concern do you have about this?

[RZehr]

Sadly, I was just informed this afternoon that another person at that same church (my mother church) passed away this afternoon. Not from Covid. I expect to go to that funeral as well, and don’t expect there to be any Covid precautions taken. But I suppose I may be surprised. This time I don’t know if any active Covid cases in that community at this moment.

Seeing as you're vaccinated (I assume fully vaccinated), how much concern do you have about this?

Our state has very recently again mandated masks inside public buildings. I have not learned exactly how churches fall on that mandate but I have a hunch they are not exempt. I also have a hunch that if churches are required to mask at the moment, that mandate will continue to be ignored.
Any concern I have is simply that it does go against the way I’ve been taught, to completely disregard what the governor is mandating. Having said that, I myself do not intend to mask either, because I have been told that “for sake of unity” it is better to follow suit and not mask for church. And of course the flesh side of me is more than happy not to mask.

How do I feel about the Covid risk? Honestly I’m perfectly comfortable taking this risk with or without the shot. Our church stopped masking around December, which was long before I got vaccinated.
I might have some concern if the Delta variant was raging through the community, but right now all is quiet on the western front.

[Josh]

Our state has very recently again mandated masks inside public buildings. I have not learned exactly how churches fall on that mandate but I have a hunch they are not exempt. I also have a hunch that if churches are required to mask at the moment, that mandate will continue to be ignored.
Any concern I have is simply that it does go against the way I’ve been taught, to completely disregard what the governor is mandating. Having said that, I myself do not intend to mask either, because I have been told that “for sake of unity” it is better to follow suit and not mask for church. And of course the flesh side of me is more than happy not to mask.

My own personal journey was feeling like my own congregation was taking a bit many liberties in not wearing masks when we had all agreed we would do so, and some of our members were taking liberties against our state's emergency order. I shared my concerns with a few people and then just sat it out.

Later on, I felt ongoing masking wasn't a good idea, but our congregation had not yet reached a consensus (80% or so vote) to stop masking. So I kept doing it at church. I didn't feel a need to do it anywhere else, so literally the only place I wore a facemask consistently was at church, out of respect for the brethren's decision and the leadership's decision to keep doing so.

The unity I felt with that seemed a lot more important than getting my own way.

Any concern I have is simply that it does go against the way I’ve been taught, to completely disregard what the governor is mandating.

This is a quite difficult concern, and not one that I think is good for people to go off and just decide to disregard the law individually. But it does seem that the church, and a local congregation, has more authority vested in it from God than from worldly governments, and does have the authority to decide how to conduct its own health affairs. I feel content with that, as the church will be around much longer than any governor, state, or nation will be.

[Valerie]

How many people died from COVID after this?

I don't know, and neither do you. This is a disease that spreads exponentially.

But let's just assume that COVID is roughly equal in severity to the seasonal flu. (I doubt this very much, but for the sake of discussion...) I find it hard to comprehend how people could go ahead with something that they realize will result in the spread of a flu equivalent through an entire community, and that the disease would be similarly spread to other communities also.

Maybe nobody died. Maybe "only" a couple of people were hospitalized. But maybe works both ways. And at the very least a large number of people from multiple communities caught and spread something like the flu (assuming, again, that COVID and the flu are equally severe).

In case you haven’t noticed, the plain world, as a whole, doesn’t care about the mainstream hysteria about covid and doesn’t agree with societal lockdowns and social isolation

The plain world concentrated in places like Holmes Co. hasn’t had an excess in deaths either - indeed, they have a lot less than other places, and their hospitals have never been full. Their vaccination rate is the lowest in the country.

Nobody in the plain world cares about covid anymore unless they’re a hypochondriac. People like you who complain about it should really think about exiting the plain world and finding a liberal community that shares your views.

I am seriously wanting to u understand.
WHY does H.es County OH seem to be an exception?
The front page of one of their papers last week stated how they have a vaccination rate of 15% and a very low transmission of covid. Why? The article pointed out that a lot of tourists comes to Holmes county. Contrary to what a lot of people might think there's far more people in Holmes county that are not Amish and Mennonite then that are. But for some reason the general consensus in that county was never to fear covid never to mask up unless absolutely forced to in certain businesses, not to worry about social distancing etc. And yet they seem to stand out like a shining g light in a world that has been ruling rain with fear and following all kinds of mandates and yet has much worse results regarding the transmission of covid.
Is God wanting us to learn something from Holmes county Ohio and how they did not put their faith in man but put their faith in God? I'm not suggested being stupid here and testing God- but clearly there was a trust in him where they didn't succumb to what the worst of the world seem to fall to.

Why?