A Note from Pastor Travis: In Person Worship!

Dear FUMC Family and Friends,

While we have been blessed through our virtual worship and all of the creative ways people have shared their gifts and talents through it, we miss worshiping in person. Thus, in an attempt to balance both the desire to worship in person with the concerns for people’s safety, the Leadership team has been working hard to determine the appropriate time to offer in-person worship again. We have considered both the increased number of vaccinated people and our awareness that the number of COVID-19 cases are still high. Considering all of these factors, we have decided that beginning on Sunday, May 2 we will offer two weekly worship options, as we did during the fall. We will continue our virtual worship each Sunday morning at 10 at YouTube and Facebook and on MMTV at 9. We will also be holding in person worship each Sunday morning at 10. The services, including prayers, scripture, and sermon will be the same for both virtual and in-person church. Every person and/or family needs to make the decision that is best for their comfortable, safety, and spiritual needs. It is a gift that we can offer both options at this time.

For those who choose to attend church in person, we want to assure that everyone is as safe as possible, so we have set a policy to help insure everyone’s safety. These guidelines include following the guidelines of health experts and the CDC and the wisdom learned from other churches that have started to hold in person worship. Two important parts of these guidelines concern the wearing of masks and singing. Even though an increased number of people are vaccinated, the recommendation of leading health experts is that in any large gathering of people, masks should continue to be used until the nation has reached herd immunity (70-80% of the country vaccinated). We will be following this guideline and requiring that everyone attending worship or other events at church wear their masks at all times. Personally, knowing several churches that have recently had COVID-19 outbreaks, I find this rule essential to everyone’s safety. Similarly, the advice of both the CDC and church music experts is that there be no singing in worship until the nation reaches herd immunity and the number of COVID-19 cases decrease significantly. While singing is a wonderful part of worship and a deeply spiritual practice, keeping everyone safe is our top priority. Below you will find other guidelines, which are the same as when we worshiped in person in the fall.    

General Expectations

·        Any church staff, volunteer, or member experiencing symptoms related to Covid-19 (including, but not limited to, fever, chills, cough, difficulty breathing, or diarrhea) must stay home.

·        Anyone exposed to someone testing positive for Covid-19 must get tested and quarantine for two weeks before returning to church.

·        Anyone returning from travel outside of the state must follow Massachusetts quarantine guidelines.

·        Anyone over the age of two entering the church must wear a mask at all times, except when approaching the lectern to give a reading.

·        Everyone is expected to maintain six feet of distance from anyone else not a member of their immediate cohabiting group, including family members who do not live together.

·        No eating or drinking is permitted.

·        Anyone who is unable or unwilling to follow these rules will be asked to leave the premises.

Greeters

·        Greeters will be positioned behind a table just inside the door of the sanctuary at least one half-hour before the start of services.

·        They will ensure that the table is supplied with hand sanitizer and masks.

·        They will place a sign outside of the church entrance informing visitors of the general expectations listed above.

·        They will greet church members and visitors warmly, modeling proper social distancing (no hugs, kisses, or handshakes) while doing so.

·        They will set expectations, reminding everyone that they must wear masks and maintain social distance inside the sanctuary.

Ushers

·        Ushers will be positioned in the sanctuary at least one half-hour before the start of services.

·        They will inspect the sanctuary and ensure that each bench is free of detritus and supplied with hand sanitizer and contact tracing cards.

·        They will monitor the congregation before the start of worship, ensuring that families sit six feet apart, and gently correcting those who violate social distancing norms.

·        If necessary, they will warn people about violations and ask them to leave.

·        They will collect tithes, offerings, and contact tracing cards.

Readers/Liturgists

·        Anyone charged with reading the Welcome, Call to Worship, Opening Prayer, or Scripture will position themselves at significant distance from the congregation, will remove their mask only for the duration of their reading, and will afterwards wipe down the mic and surfaces with which they have had contact.

·        Ushers will ensure that readers are supplied with sanitary wipes and hand sanitizer.

Pastor

·        The pastor is expected to model proper social distancing and hygienic behavior, and to muster his persuasive powers to assist the ushers with safety compliance if needed.

·        When removing his mask to address the congregation, he will stay at a significant distance from others.

Custodian

·        The custodian will perform a deep cleaning of the first-floor bathrooms prior to each service.

·        He will ensure that the bathrooms are supplied with hand sanitizer and sanitary wipes.

·        He will perform a deep cleaning of the first-floor bathrooms after each service.

Sunday School Teachers

·        Prior to each class, Sunday school teachers will sanitize heavily used surfaces in the classroom with sanitary wipes.

·        They will ensure that children maintain social distance and wear masks at all times.

·        They will model proper social distancing and hygienic behavior to the children.

·        They will ensure that the Sunday School classrooms are supplied with hand sanitizer.

·        They will clearly communicate with parents in the event that their children are not compliant with safe behaviors and will call upon parents to remove children from the classroom if necessary.

We need volunteers to help us make in-person worship work. We need people who are willing to serve as greeters, ushers, and to help with Sunday School. If you can volunteer, please let pastor Travis know at reverendtravis@gmail.com

Blessings and Grace,

Pastor Travis