(CNN)On Tuesday night, just before the police arrived, Pastor Tony Spell stood in the pulpit of his Louisiana church and delivered a message to hundreds of worshipers before him and fellow believers around the world.
"I just want to encourage the religious world tonight, Amen!," Spell said in a sing-song voice, building to the crest of his sermon.
"Keep going to church! Keep on worshiping God! ... The church is a hospital for the sick! It's a place of healing for the brokenhearted!"
In holding services for so many followers at his Life Tabernacle Church in Baton Rouge, Spell defied an emergency order by Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards banning public or private gatherings with more than 50 people to stop the spread of Covid-19.
"I feel the Covid-19 scare is politically motivated," Spell told CNN. He estimated his church hosted about 300 people for Tuesday's service.