Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Alleluia! Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Alleluia!
As Indiana moves into stage 3 of Governor Holcomb’s “Back on Track Indiana” plan, I want to inform you of some changes for in-person worship at Grace Lutheran Church.
First, Grace will continue in-person worship by invitation only and according to the following guidelines. We will:
> Invite 25 households to the Sunday worship service. These households need to RSVP to allow for an attendance and capacity plan. If you do not receive an invitation, please worship online.
> Space and mark seating.
> Recommend putting on a face covering before entering the building; masks will be available.
> Establish safe protocols for communion and collection to avoid contact (e.g., communion with individual cups and wafers in the pews;offering placed in baskets outside of sanctuary).
There is, however, one change to Sunday in-person morning worship. We will begin to invite members who are 65 and above. As I said above,all who are invited need to RSVP. If you do not receive an invitation, please worship online.
Second, the Elders and I have heard from members who would be more comfortable worshiping at a service with more cautious practices. Therefore,beginning June 3, we will start offering a Wednesday evening service at 6:00 pm for those 65 or above. In addition to the guidelines listed above(e.g., by invitation only, space and mark seating, avoiding contact), we will require all those in attendance to wear masks. There will also be no singing.The readings and homily will be the same as the previous Sunday.
We recognize that some people are eager to begin to gather together; some are more hesitant than others. We encourage everyone to make their own choices about gathering for in-person worship. Let the following help you in your decision.
> If you have any symptoms of illness, please stay home and worship online.
> If you are in a high-risk group or have underlying health conditions, please strongly consider staying home for online worship.
For those who will be waiting a little longer before returning to the sanctuary for worship, please know that you have our love and full support. We will continue to post our worship services and Bible studies online, and we encourage you to receive the Word of the Lord in this way.
In Christ,
Pastor Eggold
