Beloved members of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church,
We sing in Psalm 26: “Lord, I love the habitation of your house and the place where your glory dwells.”
It is time to make a slow and careful return to our regular practice of going to the Lord’s house, where we:
l hear His word
l sing His praises and
l receive His gifts of blessing and eternal life
l in the communion and fellowship of our fellow believers, brothers and sisters of the same heavenly Father.
This Sunday, May 17 we will have service at church at 9:00 am for those who are able to come. If you do not come, I will not think less of you. There will still be weekly services on YouTube for the foreseeable future.
Holy Communion will not be a part of this first service. We are still planning the best practices for the distribution of the body and blood of the Lord. We plan to have Holy Communion on May 31.
Who should come? Not every member will chose to come and that’s ok.
Following the advice of medical experts, we strongly encourage vulnerable members to stay home. Those who have a preexisting condition or are over the age of 65 are encouraged to avoid all gatherings. Normally it is a sin to skip church, according to the 3rd commandment. But in these times of pandemic, it may be your righteous duty to stay home from church, because by so doing, you are honoring the authorities (4th commandment) and protecting the health of others (5th commandment).
And this is especially important: if you are feeling sick, please do not come. If you have symptoms of COVID-19, or have been in contact with someone who is symptomatic, please do not come. The CDC says the symptoms are Cough, Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing; Fever, Chills, Muscle pain, Sore throat, New loss of taste or smell,
What measures will be in place to prevent the spread of disease?
l We will not shake hands or hug.
l We will not pass the offering plate. Attendees will be able to leave their offering in a basket as they enter or leave church.
l Some pews, perhaps even your usual pew, will be marked off and remain empty to make for social distancing.
l Try to plan ahead and avoid using the restrooms during your short time in the building.
l We will keep the traffic flowing as you enter and exit the building. We cannot have conversations in the narthex and hallway. If you need to talk to someone, you can take the conversation out onto the lawn or call them later on the phone.
l You will not be handed a bulletin. You may pick one up. Keep it. Don’t hand it back to the ushers.
l Bottles of hand sanitizer will be available.
l Masks will be available for those who chose to wear one.
Let Pastor know if you plan to attend. For us to prepare the church to have a gathering with reasonable social distancing, we want to have some indication of whom to expect. Please let me know your intention and your concerns by filling out this form:
With you in Christ,
Pastor Ron Koch
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