Christ Church Episcopal
These are unprecedented times. God is with us and your church is here for you.

For the next few weeks, we will be gathering online and worshiping in new ways.


We can still Be the Church, from wherever we are. Thanks for your support and prayers as we journey together.

Public in-person worship is suspended and instead we will continue worshiping online, and this Sunday is Youth Sunday ! Check in with your small groups and ministry teams about how to meet during this time and remember our over-arching principles:

  • Slow the spread
  • Safeguard the health of one another
  • Keep doing ministry but do it safely

Follow the Diocese of Virginia for updates, and please click below for more information. If you have questions of any kind, please reach out to clergy and staff.
This Sunday, hear from young voices at special worship service
Tune in Sunday to hear youth like Addie!
Last year, as your staff created a programmatic calendar for 2020, March 29 was selected as Youth Sunday. This annual tradition is a highlight of our year together as a church family. Who, but God, knew that when Youth Sunday arrived, our students would be left reeling in the wake of a cancelled school year: proms unattended, graduations delayed, cafeteria conversations unsaid, yearbooks unsigned.

Your youth community is grieving, yet they are digging deep to pull together a meaningful worship service under the direction of Adam Williams, our minister to students.
Youth Worship
Sunday, March 29
10:00 AM
Sermon by Bridget Wigner
Youth readers, worship leaders, singers, instrumentalists, and more.

Watch on YouTube and at ccerva.org

We want to hear from you! Share within our community
In these times of social distancing, our souls cry out for connection. While our opportunities to gather in-person are limited, there are ample opportunities to Be the Church, together, from wherever we may be.
Some ideas include...

CREATE A DEVOTION TO SHARE WITH OUR COMMUNITY
Using the Book of Common Prayer's Daily Office as a guide, consider writing or recording a daily devotion to share with others. Use these tips as your guide, get creative, and then submit your reflection to our communications manager, Jenny Fairchild . Include photos, poems, music, props, etc. to make it personal and creative. (Just be sure it's ok to share the content, particularly music, with others). Click below to read one from Linda Walton.
SUBMIT YOUR PRAYERS FOR THE PEOPLE
Christ Church is blessed to offer online worship again this Sunday morning. How can we lift up your prayer concerns? Submit them here or email them to clergy and they will be included as our community prays together.

Online Worship and Faith Formation Opportunities
WORSHIP
Tune in again this week to watch as we continue Lenten worship online. You can view worship on our YouTube channel and we'll post on our website and Realm. We are compressing our normal weekend worship schedule to one service on Sunday mornings.

EPISCOPAL 101: ONLINE
Are you one of the half of Episcopalians who grew up in another faith tradition and would like to know more about the Episcopal Church? Or are you a cradle Episcopalian with un-examined questions about why we do and say the things we do? Come join Episcopal 101, a study on the basics of what it means to be an Episcopalian. Rev. Richard Pelkey will lead the four-week class discussing themes in the Anglican tradition: beliefs and ethics, worship and Sacraments, and the Church and the future. Episcopal 101 occurs on Tuesday nights, 6:30 p.m.-8:00 p.m., via Zoom, an online platform that's easy: we swear! Register in Realm , and you will be sent a Zoom meeting invitation on Tuesday, March 31.

REV. SHIRLEY'S OPEN OFFICE PASTORAL HOUR
"Stop by", tell us how you’re doing, pray for the needs of others, etc. Check the Realm Events calendar for all the details on how to gather in Zoom on April1, between 3 and 4 PM.

DEVOTIONALS
Clergy, staff, and laity have been posting content throughout the week and will continue to do so. The Realm newsfeed is a great way to stay up-to-date and archived content is on our website, as well. Follow Christ Church Episcopal on Facebook and join the Garage Facebook Group, too. Gather online as you are able!

VIRTUAL COFFEE HOUR
BYOC(offee) and join Rev. Shirley on Zoom for Virtual Coffee Hour this Sunday at 11 AM. A Zoom link will be available on Realm. You bring your mug, your coffee, and hey...wear sweats if you want as you join us virtually through your mobile device or desktop computer. We’ll just be happy to see your “mug” and we raise our cups, united in God’s love.

SING WITH THE DIOCESE EASTER CHOIR
Join your voice or instrument for the Episcopal Church’s Easter Virtual Choir!
The Episcopal Church is creating a mass virtual choir video to be released on Easter Sunday. If you’re a choir member without a choir, a musician without an orchestra, or just someone who loves to sing and be part of the group, you’re who is needed. Click here for more information.
Click above to view or subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Healthy Online Communication
Communication is an important part of living in community with one another, especially during this time of social distance and increased online communication. Sometimes communication is challenging and we will inevitably mess up at times. Taking care in communications is especially important online. Click below for the norms CCE uses in our ministry teams. We offer these norms as a tool to improve our ability to do well with one another. Please observe them to your best ability, be brave in checking in with one another to see how well you’re keeping them, and let your program staff member or group leader know if you have questions or could use help. Also, feel free to add your own group norms!
Helping others during this time

These are strange times indeed and many of you have asked, how can we help? What can we do? We'll continue to update our resource page with opportunities to help others and other a few ways below:

Giving to Support the Ministries of Christ Church and help people in need

You may be experiencing a lot of financial uncertainty. We get it. Our first priority as a church is to help everyone keep body and soul together during this unprecedented time. Please contact one of the clergy if you need financial help. We don’t have a big fund, but we will do what we can. As we overcome COVID-19 together, we ask those who are able to continue to send your financial gifts to Christ Church since ministry is more important than ever. You can offer your gifts by giving online or mailing your check to our church office. And, if you’d like to make a special donation to our financial assistance fund, you can do so online and select the pull-down option for Rector’s Discretionary Fund, or you can write a check to CCE and put in the memo line “Rector’s Discretionary Fund.” Also, an enormous thank you to our faithful and generous givers who have sent in early or additional gifts to help the church since COVID-19 arrived.
In-person Youth Activities are currently suspended, but online connection continues to thrive
Youth activities are postponed. Please follow Adam's updates and online formation opportunities on Facebook and Instagram . And please join us for Youth Sunday, online this Sunday at 10 AM.
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