RETURN TO SANCTUARY WORSHIP
The Church Council has decided to open the sanctuary to in-person worship beginning next Sunday, September 6! We will be using all the safety measures we are currently using for COVID-19 at worship at Fellowship Hall.
Guidelines for Worship in the Sanctuary
For the most part, what we have been doing in Fellowship Hall will continue in the sanctuary, concerning worship practices and social distancing, however some of these guidelines are new. Please take the time and familiarize yourself with them before entering the Sanctuary for worship. For those unsure of when to return, perhaps reading over our worship plans will help guide you in your decision.
You may enter the service through the front doors or the ramp door. The doors will be either propped open or someone will open the door for you so that you will not have to touch the door handle.
Offering plates will not be passed during the worship service but instead, be placed at the entrances.
To help facilitate social distancing, we will be using every other pew in worship, and using the ends of each pew. Each seat will be marked with a bulletin.
The pews unused from the Early Service will be used at the Late Service.
Surfaces will be cleaned after the Early Service.
To minimize possible exposure to the virus, worship services will be shorter than what we are accustomed to.
All hymnals have been removed from the pew. We will continue to use a bulletin containing the worship service.
Several recent studies have found that forceful, sustained breathing, such as during singing, appears to pose a greater danger of spreading the coronavirus. To minimize these dangers, the singing of hymns, the Kyrie, and the Psalms, will be omitted. In addition to a prelude, we will be using a soloist for a hymn and speak the remaining parts of the liturgy.
The Sharing of the Peace has been omitted.
We will be refraining from handshaking and hugging.
No nursery or Sunday School will be offered at this time.
The distribution of Holy Communion will be modified to minimize touch.
We will be using wafers instead of bread at this time.
Cups of wine and grape juice will be pre-filled, and cups will be spaced out on the serving tray to eliminate accidental touching of nearby cups.
For the protection of others, the wearing of masks is strongly encouraged during worship. You are encouraged to bring your own mask, however, masks will also be available at the door.
We will continue to record one of the worship services every Sunday morning and post these on the internet, as we have been doing.
A word of caution: We cannot provide a 100% sterile and sanitized environment at all times. Due to the size of the sanctuary, the complexity of the structures and the furnishings within, and the myriads of church members who come to worship, therefore, if you have underlying health issues/concerns, you should not be at worship
