FROM THE ECUMENICAL OFFICER - SEPTEMBER 2020
The Covid-19 pandemic has upset the lives of all of us, perhaps most those living in senior communities. Some congregation are back at more traditional services; others are still gathering virtually. One thing that has impressed me as I have observed many different congregations of different denominations is the creativity and imagination the situation has brought forth.
When I walked past the Catholic parish in my neighborhood recently, I noticed the sign:
Saturday, 5 PM Mass, Families A-H
Sunday, 9 AM Mass, Families I-N
Sunday 11 AM Mass, Families O-Z
A pastor and spouse park their cars on the street and have arranged their garage with chairs and tables as a
safe, properly distanced meeting site, even when it is raining.
A congregation streams virtual services on Zoom or Facebook. The technician is usually a high-school girl.
The parking lot of an older congregation in a poorer and racially mixed neighborhood is now a food distribution center several times a week. Lots of food and some pharmacy items, including cartons of technically expired groceries, fill every bit of space inside.
A congregation has a phone chain so that every family gets a call at least once a week.
A regular Friday night picnic in a city park, again with social distancing, provides some social connections more real than a Zoom coffee hour. And the tents of homeless persons in one corner of the park remind picnickers of the needs of the world.
In a weekly pastors’ lectionary sermon preparation lunch, I find pastors asking more intentionally than before, “What is the message of this Bible passage to people living with a pandemic?”
A couple laypersons say they have stopped in a church to sit in prayer for a few minutes in the sanctuary. I know many of our church buildings are locked much of the time, but might we consider planning some hours when the sanctuary would be open, perhaps even with organ or piano music?
Lord Jesus, wherever we are and whatever our circumstances, you are with us. In these more difficult days, give us wisdom, especially when we are not of one mind about how best to live safely with our neighbors. Give us lively imaginations to enrich and make easier our life together. When things are rough, prevent us from thinking only of ourselves. Enable us to live as your people. Amen.
Hermann Weinlick, Ecumenical Officer
Moravian Church, Northern Province
When I walked past the Catholic parish in my neighborhood recently, I noticed the sign:
Saturday, 5 PM Mass, Families A-H
Sunday, 9 AM Mass, Families I-N
Sunday 11 AM Mass, Families O-Z
A pastor and spouse park their cars on the street and have arranged their garage with chairs and tables as a
safe, properly distanced meeting site, even when it is raining.
A congregation streams virtual services on Zoom or Facebook. The technician is usually a high-school girl.
The parking lot of an older congregation in a poorer and racially mixed neighborhood is now a food distribution center several times a week. Lots of food and some pharmacy items, including cartons of technically expired groceries, fill every bit of space inside.
A congregation has a phone chain so that every family gets a call at least once a week.
A regular Friday night picnic in a city park, again with social distancing, provides some social connections more real than a Zoom coffee hour. And the tents of homeless persons in one corner of the park remind picnickers of the needs of the world.
In a weekly pastors’ lectionary sermon preparation lunch, I find pastors asking more intentionally than before, “What is the message of this Bible passage to people living with a pandemic?”
A couple laypersons say they have stopped in a church to sit in prayer for a few minutes in the sanctuary. I know many of our church buildings are locked much of the time, but might we consider planning some hours when the sanctuary would be open, perhaps even with organ or piano music?
Lord Jesus, wherever we are and whatever our circumstances, you are with us. In these more difficult days, give us wisdom, especially when we are not of one mind about how best to live safely with our neighbors. Give us lively imaginations to enrich and make easier our life together. When things are rough, prevent us from thinking only of ourselves. Enable us to live as your people. Amen.
Hermann Weinlick, Ecumenical Officer
Moravian Church, Northern Province
SEPTEMBER 2020 - DISTRICT NEWSLETTER
| september_2020_news_and_notes.pdf |
AUGUST 2020 - MT. MORRIS NEWSLETTER
| august_e_news.pdf |
AUGUST 2020 - DISTRICT NEWSLETTER
| august_2020_district_newsletter__3_.pdf |
FROM THE ECUMENICAL OFFICER - JUNE 2020
| ecumenical_officer_june_2020__3_.docx |
| ecumenical_officer_june_2020__3_.pdf |