October 7, 2020
Dear Friends,
We are creating our new normal. We are a hopeful and future-oriented people with our eyes wide open about our current realities. With this in mind we are planning for re-establishing in-person gatherings on October 18th in the shaded portico area of the sanctuary. Our planning includes the best practices from the CDC and AZDHS. Also, our planning includes lessons learned and positive experiences from our online Zoom gatherings. You will have options, and the staff stands ready to help you. Here is an outline of opportunities for October:
October 11 - Celebrating Access Sunday with Michael Curry, SWC Lay Minister for Disability Education, Advocacy and Awareness
10:00 am Online Zoom Spiritual Formation.
11:00 am Online Zoom service with message first.
October 18 - The Political Philosophy of Jesus: The Kingdom of God
9:00 am In-person worship at the Sanctuary area.
10:00 am Online Spiritual Formation with Karen Richter zooming from Shadow Rock Campus.
11:00 am In-person and Online hybrid worship service with sermon first. After the message online worshipers move into Breakout Rooms for discussion. After the message in-person worshipers experience other worship elements such as prayer and music.
October 25 - The Political Philosophy of Jesus: Jubilee
9:00 am In-person worship at the Sanctuary area.
10:00 am Online Spiritual Formation from Shadow Rock Campus.
11:00 am In-person and Online hybrid worship service with sermon first. After the message online worshipers move into Breakout Rooms for discussion. After the message in person worshipers experience other worship elements such as prayer and music.
November 1 - The Political Philosophy of Jesus: The Question of Submission to Government Authority
9:00 am In-person worship at the Sanctuary area.
10:00 am Online Spiritual Formation from Shadow Rock Campus.
11:00 am In-person and Online hybrid worship service with sermon first. After the message online worshipers move into Breakout Rooms for discussion. After the message in-person worshipers experience other worship elements such as prayer and music. There will also be communion, the details of which are still in the works.
I hope this prepares you and feeds a sense of anticipation for our time together. Now, some heads up about practical things. We are offering in-person seating in the sanctuary balcony (the portico) and narthex area. We are also offering FM radio transmission for those who would prefer remaining in their car.
If you plan to sit in the area for in-person gatherings:
- Please bring a mask and wear it, covering nose and mouth, for the duration of your visit to the campus.
- We are not using the Rock-It golf cart. We encourage people to come to the elevator by the Kreider Center entrance and use it to access the sanctuary level where there will be seats.
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We will not be offering childcare at this time but we love having children be with us, so bring them and sit in a family group.
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When you arrive, go directly to a check-in station. At the station, someone will take your name, ask some COVID-19 screening questions and take your temperature. Attendance will help us with contact tracing if there is a positive test result. The screening questions and temperature checks are good practices for keeping us safe.
- You will also be asked if you have a celebration or prayer request. Compiling these helps us to share them with the congregation in the safest way. You can either tell a greeter what your prayer request or celebration is, or you can write it on a card and give it to the greeter. Writing it down ahead of time will help the process immensely and prevent bottlenecks of people and creating vectors for COVID spread.
- After checking in, please find a seat. If you come with others, please remain together, seated in family groups.
If you plan to sit in your car and tune in by way of FM radio:
- Please bring your mask and wear it if people approach your car. Ushers will greet you and bring you a bulletin.
- Ushers will also check with you to make sure your needs are met and you are able to tune into the service with your radio.
Other safety measures will include making reservations for worship attendance, both for in-person and car attendees. For a season we are limiting ourselves to 30 people at the 9:00 a.m. and 35 people at the 11:00 a.m. services. Please make reservations through the link provided here, or call a staff person if the technology is unsettling. Our safety team will be providing supplies, directions and volunteers for cleaning and sanitizing chairs, tables, door knobs, elevator buttons, handrails, and bathrooms.
We understand not everyone is ready to resume in-person gatherings at this time, so we’ll be glad to see you when the time is right for you and your family. If you have questions, please contact Pastor Ken. Please stay well and know you are loved.
Peace!
Pastor Ken
