May 13, 2020
Dear Immanuel Friends,
"When will we come back to church?" We are now two months into a suspension of in-person Sunday mornings -- worship, coffee hour, education. We miss church, we miss each other; we generally miss life "B.C.",
B
efore
C
ovid-19. We are weary of "closed" and way of "open." Here we are, Lord!
And here's an update on how we're going forward:
The Session is meeting weekly. The elected leaders of the congregation are studying and discussing the guidelines for reopening offered by the Presbyterian Church (USA), the Wisconsin Council of Churches, and the Presbytery of Milwaukee. These guidelines are informed by the CDC and the State of Wisconsin's "Badger Bounce Back" plan. We are also consulting members of the congregation who are health care professionals.
Our considerations for re-opening are not only physical (space, numbers, cleaning) but theological. We are experiencing the belief that the church is more than a building, and we are more deeply believing the importance of community in living our faith. At Immanuel we have long been committed to being a church for all, inviting all; now, we are asking, "When and how can we be open for all?" We have long been committed to
strengthening the vulnerable, and we are newly aware of the vulnerability of us all.
Our goal is to sustain our life together and promote the wellbeing of all.
The guidelines are attached to this letter and are also posted on the Immanuel website for those who would like to look them over.
Thank you to those who participated in Sunday's virtual coffee hour discussions about re-opening. Notes were taken by elders who facilitated the break-out room conversations. Input is welcomed as we make our way forward.
Our ministry emphases continue to be worship and community care:
Worship:
Indicators point to a continuation of recorded on-line worship for the weeks ahead. We dove into the deep end on this! Rob Ater, Jason Katcha, and Amy Penington have been instrumental in the first weeks of trial and error. We abandoned the live-stream effort and now pre-record the worship service so that it can be uploaded and posted by 10:00 Sunday morning. The Information and Technology Committee will work on improving the quality of the recordings.
Community care:
The deacons have been diligent about staying in touch with their senior partners. Members have been good about communicating concerns about physical, emotional, and spiritual health. Talking and praying together helps, so reach out to a church friend or one of the pastors. We're trying hard to stay in touch while we need to stay apart.
Community care extends beyond the congregation. Thank you for your continuing support of the Interchange Food Pantry and Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. Thanks to all of you who have sewn or assembled masks.
What are you reading these days? If you'd like to explore a topic in the area of faith and life, or have a book you'd like to suggest for discussion, please let me know. We can put out a list, and if six or so folks are interested we can convene a virtual group.
The children in kindergarten through high school have weekly Zoom classes and the confirmands are meeting regularly ... What about the grownups?
Finally, some of you sent messages of appreciation to the children for their letter, shared in the sermon last Sunday. It was written by the group after a lesson about Paul writing encouraging letters to churches he loved but was at a distance from. As requested, here it is again:
"Dear Church,
We love you. Remember to always have love. Don't feel alone;
God is with you and we miss you. Call your relatives.
Look on the bright side and never give up.
From your kids."
Amen. All of the above,
From your pastor.
