DIVINE STREET UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
RE-OPENING PROTOCOL FOR LIVE WORSHIP
Date of Re-opening Worship: October 4, 2020 – WORLD COMMUNION SUNDAY
RE-OPENING PROTOCOL FOR LIVE WORSHIP
Date of Re-opening Worship: October 4, 2020 – WORLD COMMUNION SUNDAY
As you know, the Divine Street UMC building has been closed for in-person worship since the middle of March. Now that we are past the five-month mark, several areas have been identified and addressed which should enable us to safely return to the worship of God for those who feel led to physically attend.
Several things are newly in place for this proposal to be appropriate. Harnett County now has available testing. Harnett County infection rates are hovering around 7% (down from 11%). The scientific statistics show that wearing masks, washing hands and social distancing do make a difference when practiced well.
With these things in mind, the following pages outline a new protocol which is designed to keep us safe and healthy while worshipping inside the Divine Street Sanctuary. You will notice that many volunteers are needed to make this plan a reality, but Divine Street is known for working well together to make happy things happen. Services will be shortened to around 30-40 minutes, and we will not engage in congregational or choir singing.
We will ask people to follow specific guidance including:
Please know that sound and video equipment is on order and should be installed during the month of October which will enable us to broadcast our services live on Sunday mornings. Those who are unable or uncomfortable entering the building will have the option of watching the live broadcast at 11:00 a.m. or a recorded version which we hope will be posted online by Sunday afternoons. This is a practice we intend to continue indefinitely. In addition, we will have the ability to duplicate the service recordings and send them to our homebound friends who are without internet access.
Several things are newly in place for this proposal to be appropriate. Harnett County now has available testing. Harnett County infection rates are hovering around 7% (down from 11%). The scientific statistics show that wearing masks, washing hands and social distancing do make a difference when practiced well.
With these things in mind, the following pages outline a new protocol which is designed to keep us safe and healthy while worshipping inside the Divine Street Sanctuary. You will notice that many volunteers are needed to make this plan a reality, but Divine Street is known for working well together to make happy things happen. Services will be shortened to around 30-40 minutes, and we will not engage in congregational or choir singing.
We will ask people to follow specific guidance including:
- Wear a mask at all times.
- Wash hands and make use of the touchless hand sanitizing stations inside the church.
- Remain 6-feet apart from anyone who does not live in your home.
- If you have any symptoms, stay home. (Touchless temperature checks will be available to you as you enter the Sanctuary.)
- If you are in a vulnerable category or care for someone who is, stay home.
Please know that sound and video equipment is on order and should be installed during the month of October which will enable us to broadcast our services live on Sunday mornings. Those who are unable or uncomfortable entering the building will have the option of watching the live broadcast at 11:00 a.m. or a recorded version which we hope will be posted online by Sunday afternoons. This is a practice we intend to continue indefinitely. In addition, we will have the ability to duplicate the service recordings and send them to our homebound friends who are without internet access.
September 30, 2020
Dear Church Family,
Grace and peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ!
I’ve heard that if you hang on long enough during a tough situation, things will get better because no matter what happens… Sunday is coming.
Nothing could have prepared us for such a journey as this – a tough situation where often we have been able to do nothing but hang on. In our memories, we have no precedence for these past months. At times, we have felt a bit like modern Israelites in a place of unfamiliar wanderings crying out “O, Lord, how long?”
Yet, just as the Israelites were delivered, God has a good plan for us, too. This Sunday, October 4, we are prepared to worship in person inside our Sanctuary for the first time since mid-March. After six months away from our home, Sunday is coming!
We have some things to keep in mind as we approach this new adventure. Let’s love each other enough to make these things happen:
As you may know, this week is World Communion Sunday. We will celebrate the Eucharist, but it will look a bit different than our normal practices. When you arrive, you will be given a small plastic bag with an individual serving of communion – one sealed cup of juice with one wafer sealed on top. This will allow us to hand you the elements without touching one another.
During our usual liturgy, we each will open our communion baggie and consume the bread and juice while sitting in place. Please use the plastic baggie to close up your trash, and leave it in the trashcan provided on your way out of the Sanctuary.
Those who remain home on Sunday morning may still take advantage of our live Zoom option. However, this is a new format for us that will look and sound quite a bit different than in the past weeks. Thank you for your patience as we maneuver through this new territory. In the next month or two, we hope to have a new camera system in place that will enable us to offer all kinds of new and wonderful experiences. For now, we will do the best we can. We will also post the service online by Monday morning so you may view it throughout the week. You may always find those links by visiting our website at www.divinestreet.org for the links. The important part is that we are worshiping well and God is glorified!
Thank you for your kindness, your patience and your caring for one another during this strange and unsettling time. For now, we will take one day at a time, offer one another love, and praise God in all things… Sunday is coming!
Blessings,
Pastor Beth
Dear Church Family,
Grace and peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ!
I’ve heard that if you hang on long enough during a tough situation, things will get better because no matter what happens… Sunday is coming.
Nothing could have prepared us for such a journey as this – a tough situation where often we have been able to do nothing but hang on. In our memories, we have no precedence for these past months. At times, we have felt a bit like modern Israelites in a place of unfamiliar wanderings crying out “O, Lord, how long?”
Yet, just as the Israelites were delivered, God has a good plan for us, too. This Sunday, October 4, we are prepared to worship in person inside our Sanctuary for the first time since mid-March. After six months away from our home, Sunday is coming!
We have some things to keep in mind as we approach this new adventure. Let’s love each other enough to make these things happen:
- Wear a mask at all times when you are inside the building.
- Do not touch one another. While you may feel very safe within the parameters of your own health situation, you do not know the health details of everyone else. Wave, bow, nod… but hugging, hand-shaking and fist-bumping are inappropriate at this time.
- Distance yourself from anyone who does not live in your own home. This includes walking, standing, and sitting. Every other pew is closed, and each open pew is marked in two-foot sections. This will help you to know if you are sitting at least 6 feet away from someone else.
- Hand sanitizing stations are available in several locations. Please take advantage of them.
- Do not move barriers. We have studied and prepared the Sanctuary in the best way possible. The barriers are designed for the safety of all. Yes, we may have to sit a few feet away from our usual spot.
- Enter through the Sanctuary doors on Layton Street (main doors) and use the center aisle to walk directly to a seat. Please do not stop to visit in the aisle as others will need to use that space. For now, the glass door through the brick courtyard is not an entrance. Because entering this way may take a few minutes, you may consider arriving a bit earlier.
- Exit by using the side aisles. We will offer you directions to make this happen smoothly. Once you are outside, you may stay and visit one another for the rest of the day!
- Stay home if you are sick or have any symptoms related to COVID-19. If you like, we will be able to check your temperature as you enter.
- Leave your offering in the receptacles provided. We will not pass an offering plate during the service.
- Do not sing aloud. For now, our worship music will be listening only.
- Dress comfortably. Weather permitting, we plan to keep the outside doors to the Sanctuary open throughout the morning. Feel free to bring a fan or a blanket – whichever you think you may need.
As you may know, this week is World Communion Sunday. We will celebrate the Eucharist, but it will look a bit different than our normal practices. When you arrive, you will be given a small plastic bag with an individual serving of communion – one sealed cup of juice with one wafer sealed on top. This will allow us to hand you the elements without touching one another.
During our usual liturgy, we each will open our communion baggie and consume the bread and juice while sitting in place. Please use the plastic baggie to close up your trash, and leave it in the trashcan provided on your way out of the Sanctuary.
Those who remain home on Sunday morning may still take advantage of our live Zoom option. However, this is a new format for us that will look and sound quite a bit different than in the past weeks. Thank you for your patience as we maneuver through this new territory. In the next month or two, we hope to have a new camera system in place that will enable us to offer all kinds of new and wonderful experiences. For now, we will do the best we can. We will also post the service online by Monday morning so you may view it throughout the week. You may always find those links by visiting our website at www.divinestreet.org for the links. The important part is that we are worshiping well and God is glorified!
Thank you for your kindness, your patience and your caring for one another during this strange and unsettling time. For now, we will take one day at a time, offer one another love, and praise God in all things… Sunday is coming!
Blessings,
Pastor Beth