caution and care and joy
Grace and peace to you in the name of Jesus the Messiah, the one who has always been with us, whether we’re social distancing or joining together for worship in our Sanctuary.
Our first in-person service since March 2020 is behind us now, it was so good to see all of those masked faces listening to the music, joining silently in prayer, and hearing God’s word read and proclaimed. It was a big step for us, and our team is enjoying what went well, and working hard to make improvements where it didn’t.
We’re aware that there were some volume issues for a few of you who were watching at home, and we’re looking into how the different devices manage sound. We’re also continuing to make sure the sound in the Sanctuary is what it should be. There was a glitch in our wifi at the church that prevented the post-service fellowship on Zoom from working, and I’m sorry about that. We’re doing everything we can to make sure it works this Sunday.
But on the other side of the ledger, that first service was even better than we’d hoped.
So we’ll come together again this Sunday, and add the Lord’s Table to the service. In addition to the precautions already in place (see below), here’s how we’ll do Communion. There will be two stations up front, each staffed by two people who will be masked and have protective gloves on. The congregation will be invited up row by row to receive the bread and a small cup, which you’ll take back to your seat. You’ll take the bread in your own time, to signify your personal journey of faith in Christ. We’ll all take the cup together as a sign of our unity in Christ. For those who can’t come forward, we will bring the bread and the cup to you.
As for the rest of the service, we’ll continue to exercise caution and care as we pledge to keep you and our staff safe. We ask that you do the same.
Here are the guidelines for reopening for public worship:
· Only vaccinated people will attend church in person.
· The sanctuary is open at about 50% capacity (about 100 people).
· Reservations will not be taken at first, but may be needed eventually.
· All people will enter through the Courtyard.
· All people will wear masks properly when indoors.
· We will continue to require distances between households of at least 3 feet.
· We will not be singing.
· We cannot allow hugging or other physical contact on church grounds.
· We will not be serving food or drinks until advised differently.
A few comments here. First, if you’re not feeling well, please stay home. Second, if these guidelines feel too restrictive to you, please address your personal liberty concerns to me or to a member of session, and NOT one of the ushers on Sunday morning. Finally, remember that this is good news! We’ve waited a long time to be together again, and we’re going to do it with caution and care and joy.
For those of you who will be watching from home, we’re changing from the Zoom program to our own page on a program called YouTube. An email will be sent out on Friday with the bulletin and a link where you can tune in on Sunday morning to watch the service. I would recommend clicking the link at 945am or so, just to make sure you can see what you’re supposed to be seeing. If something happens to the live link, the service will be recorded and available in the early afternoon. There will be a time of Zoom fellowship for livestream viewers immediately following the service. Instructions for all of this will be in the Friday email.
Remember to pray for our congregation and staff. We’ll see you one way or the other this Sunday as we worship and look at the example of Deborah and Jael.
Blessings to you,
Pastor John