The session has approved a plan to return to two worship services on October 4, 2020. This is a “phase 2” step on our way to resuming all our normal Sunday operations
We will return to our traditional schedule of first service at 8:45 a.m., School of Discipleship at 10:15 a.m., and second service at 11:15 a.m. Some precautions that we have implemented in light of the pandemic will remain. Some precautions have been lifted. Here are some important details:
- At the 8:45 a.m. service, masks will still be required. We will return to our normal row spacing, but an extra row will be reserved between each occupied row for a total of six feet of distance between people. Please keep at least two chair spaces between households or groups attending together.
- At the 11:15 a.m. service, masks are not required (though you are welcome to wear one). No extra spacing will be created between the rows or between households.
- At each service, we will continue to go forward for communion. We will not pass an offering tray at either service.
- A staffed nursery will be made available for each service and School of Discipleship. Temperature checks of parents and children using the nursery will be required.
- For adult School of Discipleship, there will be one class in the sanctuary. An extra row of seats will be reserved between each occupied row for a total of six feet of distance between people. At least two chair spaces between households or groups of people attending together is also required. Masks, however, are optional.
- For children’s School of Discipleship, there will be nursery and normal classes for ages 2 to 5 and 1st through 5th grades. These classes will meet in our largest classrooms and we will space children out within them. Grades 6-12 will be taught by the youth group leaders. Masks will be required for all teachers and children in grades 6-12.
Why are we making these changes? We are among a few churches across the nation that have been able to return to some semblance of normal worship. Our attendance is twice the national average! Conducting three services, however, is taking a toll on the pastors, staff, elders, and volunteers. We believe this “phase 2” plan makes the best use of our available resources and brings us closer to our normal Sunday morning experience, while also providing additional safeguards that will serve our congregation and community. In fact, we recently installed new HEPA filters that are rated MERV 13 (standard filtration is MERV 8), and are changing them out much more frequently, which provides a significantly higher degree of filtration in Covenant Hall.
With fall and cold and flu season coming, please love your neighbors by staying home and worshipping via our livestream if you have a fever or chills, cough, body aches, sore throat, or congestion. Even if these symptoms are of a cold or the flu and not COVID-19, you should not come to church.
We are grateful to God that no one at Redeemer has fallen ill with COVID-19 since the resumption of our services in May. We are also grateful for all of you who have volunteered to help in all the ways we’ve needed over the last several months so that our church could gather again for worship. Please continue to pray for God’s grace and mercy as we take this important next step toward normalization.