Easter 2020 took place towards the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in April, leaving churches without the option of gathering to worship in-person. Many held worship services over Zoom or Facebook Live, while others decided to cancel services altogether. A number of churches made the creative decision to hold drive-in church services on Easter Sunday. However, government and community leaders didn’t all agree to this approach. One such case involved the King James Baptist Church in Greenville, Mississippi. The mayor had issued a statement restricting all in-person gathering for church services. Because the statement didn’t explicitly restrict gathering in cars, Rev. James Hamilton chose to move forward with his plans. When Sunday arrived, police officers interfered and forced attendees to leave or pay a fine.
Rev. Hamilton shared a brief video on social media showing a portion of the confrontation, and upon gaining traction on Twitter, he made an appearance the following day on Fox News to make a statement concerning the situation. He presented a civil defense of the Church’s decisions, then engaged in a discussion on religious freedom and constitutional rights. Fox News took charge of pressing the city mayor and Mississippi governor for a response. The Church also partnered with First Liberty, an organization which provides legal counsel and defensive to small religious groups. They released a statement in support of the Church’s decisions. Following this national media attention, local government officials crafted a response and amended their position to support drive-in worship services.
analysis
This is an interesting story to look at from a public relations perspective because it’s a little messy. This Church did not have a PR department for their congregation, and I wonder if they did how this situation would’ve been handled differently. Hamilton made the decision to publicize this incident on social media, an interesting decision because of the potential for virality – which it achieved quickly. It was shared by conservative Christian influencers, which may have happened organically but could have also been a calculated move in an effort to gain national attention. This popularity then gave Hamilton the opportunity to appear on Fox News, a network with a large audience of conservative Christians. This was his opportunity to make an official statement and defend the decisions of the Church.
He made a clear and simple defense of his Church and their adherence to CDC guidelines. But follow-up interview questions led to derailment and politically charged statements which distracted from his primary points, and could polarize those sympathetic to his cause. If there had been a PR group working with the church, this public moment likely would’ve been kept more direct and unbiased. This semi-chaotic rise to the public eye could’ve been better executed, but also goes to show how people who are determined to make their point known can find a way with or without a well-organized strategy.