(ChurchLeaders) Pastor Tony Spell of Life Tabernacle Church in East Baton Rouge, Louisiana is still defying state government orders concerning church gatherings. Drawing more than 1,000 people at his services during the pandemic, Spell has already been charged with a misdemeanor and arrested for other aggressive actions. However, the embattled minister doesn’t seem to be slowing down, even as Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards has loosened restrictions to allow churches to reopen at 25 percent of their normal capacity.
Doubling down on his defiance, Spell announced he would open his church this weekend to 125 percent of its capacity and welcome guests from other states, including New York.