The Delta variant is fast getting a toehold in Northern Virginia, with new cases of COVID-19 skyrocketing in Alexandria. Just yesterday, there were 1,101 new cases in the city, versus a seven-day average of 808 cases. Further, the CDC has announced that the Delta variant is highly transmissible and causes more serious symptoms.
You’d think this would be enough to make reasonable people decide this is the time to revert to strictly online services, wouldn’t you?
But not Grace Church.
Not only does the church continue to hold in-person services, but it is going forward with plans to hold the annual Shrine Mont parish retreat weekend. Held at the mountain resort of Shrine Mont, which serves as the Cathedral Diocesan for DioVA, the weekend typically involves lots of people, in close quarters drinking themselves silly.
On top of that, the average age at Grace is probably 60+, with relatively few parishioners under that age. Between that and preexisting conditions including diabetes, asthma, obesity and alcoholism, having an event like this in the midst of a pandemic is outrageously stupid. As in too dumb for words.
Grace Episcopal Alexandria surely is a shit show.
