T.O. councilman and pastor says his church will host Communion, confirms resignation from city

A Newbury Park church opened its doors for a Communion service Sunday despite state and local public health orders restricting non-essential activities.

Rob McCoy, a pastor at Godspeak Calvary Chapel and a Thousand Oaks City Council member, confirmed Sunday morning he had resigned — effective immediately — from the City Council because of his decision to go ahead with Communion.

"I didn't want them to have to endure the fallout of my decision," he said of city leaders, adding that he had informed them of his resignation. On Sunday morning, he was not listed as a council member on the city website.

McCoy said the church's sermon for Palm Sunday would be streamed live online for people to watch from home. After the sermon, the church opened its sanctuary doors for the sacrament of Communion, during which bread and wine are consumed to represent the last meal of Jesus.

"Our theological tradition is you take Communion from the same loaf," McCoy said before the service.

The city of Thousand Oaks confirmed McCoy's resignation in a statement issued Sunday morning.

“Rob was a voice of strength and healing as the city recovered from two simultaneous tragedies – Borderline and Woolsey Fire," said Mayor Al Adam. "I appreciate his contributions and wish him and his family well. While these circumstances are unfortunate, the remaining members of the Council and I are very much focused on moving forward.” 

The service first came to public light in a Reuters story published Saturday morning in which McCoy said the service was non-negotiable.

McCoy said he took issue with churches being deemed non-essential under the public health order and not other types of businesses, such as liquor stores and cannabis dispensaries.

“Our goal is to not put anyone in the community in danger. Our goal is to fulfill our religious requirement,” McCoy said. "If Communion isn't essential and the church isn't essential, then Christ isn't essential, and I can't live with that." 

According to the church's website, the service would maintain guidelines for social distancing set by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, such as queuing people six feet apart and refraining from personal contact between attendees.

McCoy said the church's sanctuary can hold up to 400 people. To maintain social distancing, only 10 chairs at a time would be set out for those taking Communion. The church also offered curbside delivery to those who wished to receive Communion without leaving their cars, as well as home delivery to those who requested it, according to McCoy.

McCoy said he did not wish the service to harm anyone and that attendees would be practicing their First Amendment right of freely exercising their religion. 

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On Sunday afternoon, the Ventura County Sheriff's Office had two deputies on site to monitor the situation, officials said.

"This is something where Mr. McCoy reached out ahead of time," said Capt. Eric Buschow, spokesman for the sheriff's agency. "Obviously, this was discouraged, but he expressed a desire to work within CDC guidelines."

Church officials met guidelines by not allowing more than 10 people to gather inside, Buschow said. They would not physically hand people the bread, he added, but would place it on a table where attendees could get it.

From the beginning, Buschow said, the stance of the sheriff's office and other local law enforcement agencies has been to respond to complaints and to educate business owners, nonprofits and the public about social distancing.

"We have taken a diplomatic approach, not a hard line," he said.

So far, the sheriff's office has not issued any citations or made any arrests based on the public health order.

On Saturday, for example, deputies were sent to three golf courses where golfers were out playing. In all three cases, club managers were compliant and cooperative, Buschow said. Golf courses were specifically addressed in the public health orders, he said.

Since stay-at-home orders were issued by the state on March 19, deputies have responded to complaints about everything from businesses being open to house parties, he said. Many businesses that were the target of a complaint turned out to be essential, he said.

"Deputies got there, looked at the situation and deemed it to be just fine," Buschow said.

As of Sunday afternoon, 221 Ventura County residents have tested positive for the new coronavirus, county officials said, including 18 new cases reported Sunday. Six people have died, 62 have recovered and 153 remain under home quarantine. The first local case was reported on March 6.

Late Sunday afternoon, McCoy said hundreds of people had received Communion during the event. About 70 cars used the drive-through option, where poles and trays were used to maintain distance. Many cars had multiple people inside, he said.

About 300 people came into the sanctuary, he said, possibly more.

"Each tray held 50 containers of bread, and we went through seven of them," he said.

Hundreds of people from different congregations came, McCoy said, as well as pastors from other churches.

"It was a good day," he said. "There were a lot of tears."

A couple of protesters also showed up, he said, but not many.

Whether a similar event will take place on Good Friday hasn't yet been determined, he said.

McCoy was elected to the Thousand Oaks City Council in 2015 and took his turn as mayor last year in a stint that ended in December. He said his resignation was triggered by a realization that the action could create a firestorm for the city if he stayed on the council.

"My heart's broken," he said. "I love the council, and I love the city."

City officials said that based on Thousand Oaks' ordinance for filling vacant seats, it is likely that the seat will remain vacant until it's filled during the November election.

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Jeremy Childs is a breaking news and public safety reporter covering the night shift for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached by calling 805-437-0208 or emailing jeremy.childs@vcstar.com. You can also find him on Twitter @Jeremy_Childs.