The recent Fourth of July holiday invited Americans to contemplate the principles upon which this nation was founded – and the battles fought to uphold those principles. Perhaps more than any other time of the year, we reflect on the heroism and sacrifice of our soldiers. Historical lessons from our past show us how we can draw on those principles to better serve the vulnerable and minimize the loneliness that so many people feel during our global COVID-19 pandemic.

Traditional ways of coping with death and mourning changed drastically during America’s deadliest war, the Civil War. Thousands of soldiers died on the battlefield or in chaotic field hospitals, anonymously and among strangers. Many families were not given the privilege of burying their relatives themselves, as the vast number of casualties required mass graves. Often, family members could not be present at the passing of their loved ones to provide support in their final hours. Those who held to the idea of the good death considered this a terrible privation.

In response, nurses and caretakers who were present with soldiers in their last moments often wrote letters to their families, trying to provide some means of support by reassuring them...

“Singing? I’ve heard that’s even worse than coughing!” That remark, and the horrified tone of the well-intentioned woman from my local church who made it, echoes inside many congregations these days. In a world turned upside down by the COVID-19 pandemic, many parishes which have chosen to reopen their doors prohibit the congregation from singing together in public worship.

This infringement on worship is based in part on a government directive. On May 22, the CDC released its “Recommendations for Communities of Faith,” which included the following statement:

Consider suspending or at least decreasing use of a choir/musical ensembles and congregant singing, chanting, or reciting during services or other programming, if appropriate within the faith tradition. The act of singing may contribute to transmission of COVID-19, possibly through emission of aerosols.

The CDC later deleted the statement from its website, “apparently because the White House had not approved it,” according to NPR. While the revised recommendations do not officially advise churches against congregational music, many faith communities nevertheless continue to abide by this  precaution. This indefinite prohibition on singing affects countless churches of the Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Eastern Orthodox traditions, as well as other faiths.

The CDC's...