The spread of COVID-19 can, and does, occur anywhere that many people are congregated — especially in close quarters, indoors and unmasked. No gathering place is immune, no matter how much one hopes and prays it to be so. Certainly not potential super-spreader events, such as holiday-weekend parties; not workplace breakrooms, restaurants or bars; not even churches and places of worship.

So it was illogical — well-intentioned, but misguided — for Gov. David Ige to have exempted churches from the state’s latest pandemic order last month, aimed at halting the alarming and deadly spread of COVID-19. The order reimposed stiff limits on the number of people allowed in social establishments, social-distancing requirements and prohibited mingling. This summer, the state Department of Health (DOH) had even warned that places of worship continued to be among settings of COVID-19 cluster outbreaks, along with restaurants, social gatherings and lodging.

This is a critical time in Hawaii’s fight against the highly infectious coronavirus. On Tuesday, Hawaii had seen 37 COVID-19 deaths over the previous seven days. Hospitals are dangerously reaching the breaking point of 500 COVID-19 hospitalizations, the majority of them unvaccinated against the coronavirus.

A vaccination, of course, literally is the best medicine to stop COVID-19 in its lethal tracks. But even as immunizations move ahead, albeit too slowly, so much more needs to be done on the prevention front. It’s imperative for everyone to pull together now: to maintain masking and hand-hygiene safety protocols, to stay home when ill, and to limit gathering sizes.

Businesses are bracing for another round of belt-tightening next week as drastic but necessary vaccination-access policies launch, such as Safe Access Oahu, a last-ditch attempt to beat back COVID-19, short of another lockdown that no one wants.

Knowing how quickly the coronavirus spreads, it seems unsafe for church and religious gatherings to be exempt from the sacrifices essential for the community good. Such activities are important, of course, for their profound fulfillment of spiritual needs as well as for fellowship. Still, in a pandemic, curbing of social interactions should be strictly observed, including masking and social distancing — and church leaders should not be prolonging, let alone promoting, after-service gatherings. For the short term, creative means such as virtual services, or Bible studies or fellowship via Zoom, could be options or adjuncts.

Noted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in its guidance for religious activities: “In accordance with the First Amendment, no faith community should be asked to adopt any mitigation strategies that are more stringent than the mitigation strategies asked of similarly situated entities or activities.”

For religious activities to adhere to social-gathering sizes and limits, then, would certainly align with what everyone else must follow.

As has been seen at other congregant settings such as bars and restaurants, less-than-careful faith gatherings have caused COVID-19 outbreaks, as spotlighted in the state DOH’s June 24 weekly cluster report:

>> A cluster of 13 COVID-19 cases linked to a faith-based retreat and subsequent large gathering on the mainland was investigated. At least eight of 17 Hawaii attendees tested positive for COVID-19, plus five secondary household cases; four required hospitalization, including one in hospice care. Only 1 of the 17 attendees was fully vaccinated for COVID-19.

>> A cluster of 11 linked to a Kauai place of worship. Working with the faith-based organization’s leader, about 300 families were notified of their potential exposure and about free community testing. Services had occurred indoors, with inconsistent mask use and singing.

Clearly, religious leaders hold much sway over their flock. So it was gratifying to see recent full-page newspaper ads, signed by a long list of Hawaii Christian clergy, strongly urging all those eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible.

“Beyond a sincere greeting,” the message said in part, “aloha is a sacred affirmation of life, a desire of wanting the best for one another in all circumstances and doing our part to make that a reality.”

That important message is right on the mark — both in regards to vaccinations and in the necessity to limit gatherings for now, all for the greater good.