"Two megachurches decided to open Sunday services with some safe-for-work joke stripteases, in a cheeky protest against California’s closing down of churches due to the Covid-19 pandemic, while letting strip clubs stay open.
Before the start of Sunday’s sermon, pastors at two churches opened with short burlesque dance routines, taking off their jackets and even throwing their ties into the cheering audience.

“Strip clubs (Not Churches) are exempt from the Covid lockdowns, and are deemed essential by our governor!” said senior pastor of Awaken Church Jurgen Matthesius on Instagram. “So we decided we are NOW Awaken family friendly strip club!” he quipped.

The pastor then rolled with the joke, clarifying, “we strip the devil of his hold, power & authority over people’s lives!”


With God working in mysterious ways, a similar bit was performed by pastor Rob McCoy at Godspeak Calvary Chapel. “This is insane!” McCoy later said of unequal rules set for churches and strip clubs in the state. “Cannot America see the hypocrisy and the stupidity of all this?” he asked, calling the rules “tyranny.”


The tongue-in-cheek stripteasees at the Awaken Church and Godspeak Calvary Chapel came after the San Diego Superior Court’s November 6 decision, which allowed for strip clubs to reopen while churches remained closed.

California Christians have been up in arms about the ban on in-person church services for months. “There is a desperate need for the church with the brokenness within our community,” senior pastor Matthesius told Good Morning San Diego earlier this month."