The New York Times published an article on Wednesday that claimed, “Churches Were Eager to Reopen, Now They Are a Major Source of Coronavirus Infections.”

“More than 650 coronavirus cases have been linked to nearly 40 churches and religious events across the United States since the beginning of the pandemic,” the Times claims, “with many of them erupting over the last month as Americans resumed their pre-pandemic activities.”

Reason Magazine performed an analysis of the claims made by the Times and found they were complete bunk. Only 0.02% of cases have come from churches, an infinitesimal percentage, but the fake news targets churches while giving a pass to leftists who are rioting and looting nationwide.

“The number of confirmed COVID-19 infections in the United States is now 3.1 million, meaning the church-related cases identified by the Times account for 0.02 percent of the total. On the face of it, that does not seem like “a major source of coronavirus infections.” And there are something like 385,000 churches in the U.S., so the ones tied to COVID-19 infections represent around 0.01 percent of Christian congregations,” Reason Magazine wrote.

Reason Magazine noted that the article from the Times is bigoted against Christianity and serves as propaganda against religious worship. The Times claims that COVID-19 “has struck churches that reopened cautiously with face masks and social distancing in the pews, as well as some that defied lockdowns and refused to heed new limits on numbers of worshipers.”

“The issue is whether churches can reopen with an acceptable level of risk by following the same guidelines that apply to other settings where people gather for extended periods of time. By implying that precautions don’t really matter, the Times is sending a dangerous message to Americans, many of whom are already weary of social distancing rules and disinclined to wear masks,” Reason Magazine wrote.

Big League Politics has reported on how Christian pastors have been charged with crimes for holding services during COVID-19 mass hysteria:

Another Christian pastor is being charged with crimes for holding church services during the coronavirus lockdown.

Mark Anthony Spell, a Central, La. pastor, is receiving six misdemeanor charges for disobeying Gov. John Bel Edwards’ emergency shutdown edicts after he held church services this past weekend.

“Over the last two weeks I have worked with the sheriff, state police, the state fire marshal, Reverend Tony Perkins, and others to address this matter outside of legal action. Mr. Spell made his intentions to continue to violate the law clear. Instead of showing the strength and resilience of our community during this difficult time, Mr. Spell has chosen to embarrass us for his own self-promotion,” said Central Police Chief Roger Corcoran, who issued the misdemeanor summons to Spell.

“Mr. Spell will have his day in court where he will be held responsible for his reckless and irresponsible decisions that endangered the health of his congregation and our community. This is not an issue over religious liberty, and it’s not about politics. We are facing a public health crisis and expect our community’s leaders to set a positive example and follow the law,” he added.

Spell has allegedly convened six unlawful church services at his Life Tabernacle Church hosting more individuals at his worship proceedings than what is allowed by the state. East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore said Spell is receiving a misdemeanor count for every time he allegedly violated the edict. They will not charge everyone who gathered unlawfully at the church but will attempt to make an example of Spell because “encouraged others to violate” the law.

The Left has used COVID-19 to punish Christians, as they exploit the crisis to punish hurt enemies and gain illicit control.