DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - A Decatur church is openings its doors for a service on Sunday despite a stay-at-home order from Gov. JB Pritzker. 

Salem Baptist Church announced in a Facebook Live video it will reopen its doors for worship on May 18, 2020. Leaders with the church talked about religion and government in explaining their decision, with Pastor Derek Bradshaw offering criticism of the Pritzker administration. 

"Today the government is saying that it's OK and it's essential for us to be able to go and have abortions if we want to at abortion clinics, but it is not OK and it is not essential for us to go into church and worship the Lord," Bradshaw said. "Here's what the government's doing. They are rewarding evil and they are punishing good. That is not the government that God ordained."

Bradshaw went on to be critical of Pritzker for calling marijuana dispensaries and liquor stores essential while churches aren't. 

In a community update video posted to YouTube, Decatur City Manager Scot Wrighton expressed his disapproval with the decision of this church to have service, along with the choice of multiple shops to open, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"These actions don't just endanger the customers and the members of these organizations - they endanger us all," he said. 

Wrighton said people need to be patient as Decatur and Macon County leaders, along with the local chamber of commerce, are working hard to get businesses open as soon as possible. He said there will be new guidelines compatible with Pritzker's Restore Illinois plan. 

He believes organizations should be able to open no later than May 29 if the local government's plan continues on schedule. He said protocols should be in place before that date.

Wrighton issued a more detailed statement to WAND-TV early Thursday afternoon.

"The city of Decatur has no ordinances to enforce the governor’s order that worship services should be held outdoors until the public health situation improves; so we will take no formal enforcement actions. Based on the Governor’s April 30 order allowing outdoor worship services, the city already distributed guidelines for such gatherings, and we know that many churches are using them to guide how they host and manage group church meetings and worship services during the pandemic. We are pleased that many worship services have resumed as a result. Salem Baptist Church has chosen to violate the guidelines and have their corporate worship services inside. Nonetheless, the Decatur Police Department will not be at Salem Church on Sunday to interfere in any of the church’s plans. The city respects freedom of assembly and freedom of religion.

I mentioned Salem Baptist Church in my Wednesday video because their pastor called my office staff to make it clear that Salem Baptist Church intended to defy the governor’s orders, hold indoor services, and that this information was broadcast on their website. This is not helpful. Decatur’s ability to begin opening businesses and get back to some sense of normal life as soon as possible DEPENDS on keeping our COVID-19 hospitalization rates down and the percentage of positive tests low in relationship to the total number of tests conducted. As a community, we need to remain vigilant and work together to flatten and then turn the infection numbers downward. This decision by a local church is not just potentially harmful to its members, it could be harmful to the entire community."

The church explained more about why it is holding service on its official website. Officials also laid out social distancing guidelines for those who attend the May 18 service.