St. Alban's Cathedral, Prince Albert (Submitted photo/Anglican Diocese of Saskatchewan)

By Glenn Hicks

covid-19

Bishop’s warning as Sask. COVID concerns escalate

Apr 2, 2021 | 8:00 AM

As the city and region’s churches across multiple denominations of Christianity prepare services for this Easter weekend, one religious leader is going on what he admits is a ‘rant’ regarding the dangerous realities COVID-19 poses to the province.

Prince Albert based Michael Hawkins, the Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Saskatchewan—which encompasses the northern two-thirds of the province—knows better than most the very serious consequences of COVID-19. He’s pleading with churchgoers to be very disciplined in their social distancing while also criticizing the government for what he’s called their ‘half-measures’ to combat the pandemic.

Hawkins, 58, said he nearly died from COVID-19 and spent a total of 15 days on two separate hospital stays starting in November.

“I’m still suffering from heart damage and brain damage from it,” he told paNOW. “[But] I’m about 85 per cent [recovered] now.”

Prince Albert based Bishop of Saskatchewan Michael Hawkins thinks all churches may have to shut again within two weeks (Submtted photo/Diocese of Saskatchewan)

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While he’s delighted there will be limited numbers of people allowed to come to various Good Friday and Easter Sunday services across the wider region, Hawkins suggested that may be short-lived.

“I’m thrilled we’ll be able to gather in some measure this weekend, [but] I suspect we’re going to have to—in the worst-case scenario—close down our churches in two weeks,” he predicted.

‘Inadequate measures’

“It’s absolutely clear to me the half measures imposed [by government] so far are inadequate for saving lives and protecting the vulnerable from mortality. I’m deeply concerned. We could end up, in two weeks, in the same place Regina is in.”

On Thursday afternoon, the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) alerted the public of an increased risk of COVID-19 in Regina, the Southeast and Southwest due to a rise in variants of concern and is strongly urging Saskatchewan residents to strictly adhere to all public health order and measures. The Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation has called for all schools in the province to move to online learning only following the Easter break.

Hawkins added it was a ‘travesty’ that bars were still able to remain open for the sake of helping the economy at a time when the health system faced so many challenges.

He noted among the many people killed by the coronavirus across our region were two prominent members of the local community: Canon Angus Sewap with St. Bartholomew Church in Pelican Narrows in December, and the month before that, former NHLer Fred Sasakamoose who grew up in the Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation. Another member of the community in Pelican Narrows is to be buried this weekend after a COVID-related death, according to Hawkins.

The diocese has several churches located across a large geographical area, including as far away as Grandmother’s Bay, La Ronge and Stanley Mission, and three in the city of Prince Albert.

As for this weekend, Hawkins said churches would have contact tracing in place and implored parishioners to respect the 2-metre social distance, wear their face masks, stay in their pew and not to socialize.

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glenn.hicks@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @princealbertnow