Evangelist and pastor Andrew Hamilton contacted Black Christian News Network One (BCNN1.com) to inform us that pastor Kenny Baldwin of Crossroads Baptist Church in Baileys Crossroads in Fairfax County has been diagnosed with the coronavirus. Members of the church were advised to self-quarantine at home for 14 days. The Fairfax County Health Department said he became ill with respiratory symptoms on March 12 while traveling out of state. Pray for the family and the church.
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Baptist Pastor Contracts COVID-19, Church Attacks Media
After the pastor of a black Baptist church in Virginia tested positive for COVID-19, the church attacked local media for reporting on his case and how he may have put others in the community at risk. The pastor joins a number of clergy members across the country struck by the respiratory disease caused by coronavirus, including the Episcopal rector at Christ Church Georgetown in Washington, D.C., two Catholic priests in Brooklyn, New York, and an Episcopal rector (who is the sister of actor Matthew Broderick) in Beverly Hills, California.
As of March 21, more than 307,000 people globally have been infected, and more than 13,000 have died. The United States, the country with the third-highest number of infected persons, has more than 26,000 who have tested positive and 340 dead.
On Thursday (March 19), Crossroads Baptist Church in Bailey’s Crossroads, a Virginia suburb in the Washington, D.C. area, posted on its website that its senior pastor, Kenny Baldwin, was in the hospital being treated for pneumonia. They urged prayers for his recovery as “as doctors fully diagnose him and determine the best course of treatment.” The next day, the church posted an update explaining that while Baldwin was doing better, he had tested positive for COVID-19.
“The doctors suspected this from the time he was admitted, but we obviously had to await confirmation,” the church’s statement added. “They have treated him for the last couple of days with that possibility in mind, and they believe he has endured the worst and is on the upswing. By God’s grace we are navigating this situation.”
The church provided visitor card information and video surveillance to help the Fairfax County Health Department contact individuals who attended the service, recommending the attendees self-quarantine for 14 days to prevent the spread of the virus in the community. The church had previously canceled all upcoming in-person church services.
After a local NBC affiliate reported March 20 on Baldwin’s status, the church posted a lengthy update on their website the next day attacking the station for “incorrect statements” and encouraging church members to contact the station with complaints about the story by reporter Shomari Stone.
The church’s Facebook page included a link to their online statement, but also added on March 21 about the news report: “Satan is busy, but we are not ignorant of his ways.”
The first complaint listed on the church’s website was that the anchor introducing the segment said members who attended the March 15 service needed “self-quarantine until the end of the month” when the actual date is March 29 (the date the reporter said later in the actual segment). The church’s statement argued that saying “the end of the month” is off by two days and “creates a more ominous and newsworthy statement.”
The church also complained the reporter implied “our pastor conducted services on Sunday with a suspicion of being ill.” Yet, the church’s statement calling the report “untrue” actually noted Baldwin went to a local clinic two days before the service with a fever, headache, and sore throat while in North Carolina. They claim a doctor told him his “symptoms were not consistent with COVID-19” so he continued with his preaching as he was “feeling well and being asymptomatic” on Sunday.
The church particularly criticized the reporter for noting that the Thursday before the March 15 service Virginia Governor Ralph Northam “declared a state of emergency and advised all Virginians to avoid large gatherings.” Northam did make that declaration, and the next day closed all public schools in the state.
Source: Word and Way
Pastor in Bailey’s Crossroads tests positive for coronavirus
Pastor Kenny Baldwin of Crossroads Baptist Church in Bailey’s Crossroads has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19).
He became ill with respiratory symptoms on March 12 while traveling out of state, the Fairfax County Health Department states, and is currently hospitalized. Baldwin is in his 40s.
Crossroads Baptist Church reported on Friday evening that doctors informed Baldwin his X-rays look good and he is improving.
He was initially treated for pneumonia after he was admitted to the hospital. Doctors suspected he had COVID-19, and that was confirmed March 20.
“By God’s grace we are navigating this situation as a church family. More important than anything is his recovery, the well-being of his wife and family, and our church family,” Crossroads Baptist Church states.
Some services and activities at Crossroads Baptist were cancelled on March 15 and all activities were cancelled on March 17. Services are being live-streamed.
The Fairfax County Health Department is conducting a contact investigation and is notifying everyone who attended the church’s morning service on March 15 that they should self-quarantine at home for 14 days.
Quarantining at home means not going to work or school and not attending public gatherings, or using public transportation or ride-sharing, the department states. While at home, contact with other family members should be limited. For anyone who attended the March 15 service and was infected with COVID-19, symptoms – fever, cough, and difficulty breathing – would likely appear before March 29.
Source: Annandale Blog
Fairfax pastor tests positive for coronavirus
The pastor of Crossroads Baptist Church in the Baileys Crossroads area of Fairfax County has been diagnosed with the coronavirus, the Fairfax health department said Friday, and members of the congregation who attended the church’s morning service last Sunday were advised to self-quarantine at home for 14 days.
The church identified the pastor as Kenny Baldwin, and said he is hospitalized. The Fairfax County Health Department said he became ill with respiratory symptoms on March 12 while traveling out of state. He was tested on March 18, and the results were received on Friday.
“The doctor informed him today that his x-rays look better and he is improving,” the church said on its website Friday night. Baldwin is in his 40s, the health department said.
Crossroads Baptist is located at 5811 Hoffmans Lane, just south of Columbia Pike. The church held an 11 a.m. service last Sunday, but did not have Sunday school or its regular 6 p.m. service. The health department notified visitors to the 11 a.m. service that they should not go to work or school, attend public gatherings or use public transportation until March 29.
Source: Washington Post
Virginia Church Community Prays for Pastor With Coronavirus
Crossroads Baptist Church Pastor Kenny Baldwin has stepped down from the pulpit after testing positive for coronavirus. News4’s Darcy Spencer spoke with Baldwin’s brother about how he is recovering.
Source: NBC Washington
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