I appreciate that you point out this is not a universal thing. For some churches this may be true.
I cannot speak for other churches, but I have been a minister (what some call “pastor”) for 30 years and in 2009 I quit local ministry to work with an international nonprofit organization.
The churches I worked with and attended were not about money. In fact, the ministerial staff (including the senior minister) generally made less money (when you took into account that we had no health or retirement benefits in our denomination) than the average member.
Easter may have been a larger crowd — but that never translated into a particularly large contribution — partly because we told guests not to feel compelled to give — they are guests, after all!
I would dare say most churches (the majority of churches are under 200 adherents) do not focus on funds but on ministry. And I’d be willing to wager that most churches in America today are not meeting in physical assemblies but are online. I communicate with hundreds of churches — over the last few weeks, everyone of the churches I have talked with (via phone) are not having physical assemblies. Every church leader I have talked with are very concerned for their elderly members, especially and do not want to encourage the spread of this disease.
In other words, the churches I communicate with are being responisible and are unconcerned with their collection plates. They are more concerned with the health and well being of their people and their communities, as it should be.
The church I attend does not own a building (and has no intention to ever own one), pays their pastor part time (he has an outside job, too) and is focused on using their collected funds to serve the community and the global community. We also don’t “pass a plate” but give through a box set up on a table, mail in, or give online. We quit gathering in person very early on when the pandemic hit and had been meeting on Zoom ever since (including today for Easter). It hasn’t affected our giving in any way (we’re actually giving more than budgeted and, since we haven’t had to rent space, we’ve saved money).
Perhaps it is about money for these egregious examples you have given. Perhaps it is about a huge ego. Or perhaps it is just pure stubbornness and a mindset that has been encouraged by popular evangelicals in the past 30 years that somehow we are being persecuted in America (which is an insult to those Christians in other areas of the world who are actually being imprisoned and killed for their faith).
In any case, I agree — this is self-centered and foolishness. The greatest commands Jesus tells us is loving God and loving one’s neighbor. Loving neighbor (Romans 13:10; 1 John 3; James 2) means to do no harm to your neighbor. I would think infecting your neighbor would be showing an incredible lack of love.
