US county mayor won’t require wearing masks until ‘Holy Spirit’ guides him
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The mayor of a county in Tennessee, USA, said that he will not require citizens to wear masks unless the Holy Spirit says so.
Lincoln County Mayor Bill Newman disclosed his views in an interview with Alabama Local News released earlier today, Nov. 19. He stressed, however, that he was not anti-science.
“(The virus) is science and it’s true and I do believe masking helps prevent the spread of it. But I don’t feel I should mandate people wearing masks at this time,” he was quoted as saying.
Despite this, he underscored that he was keeping a close look at the COVID-19 situation in Lincoln County, which has around 34,000 residents. It has so far recorded 1,322 infections to date, according to the report.
Newman shared that he looks for God’s guidance whenever he has a big decision to make.
“The Holy Spirit dwells within us. It’s a heart thing. It’s not a mind thing. But you’re using all your God-given (talents), your physical or mental or spiritual, all those things. When I pray for guidance, I may not know the answer immediately,” he was quoted as saying.
Residents, however, were not happy with Newman’s sentiments, the report said. A page administrator of the Facebook group MaskUpLincolnCounty told the news outlet that “there’s a lot of anger.”
The said administrator, named Kay Campbell, noted that citizens were feeling like Newman was “ducking behind the Holy Spirit” instead of taking “a chance for leadership.” Ian Biong /ra
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