This week's Coronavirus Update
There are no changes within the Illinois Great Rivers Conference. Regions 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 are now in Phase 4 with no mitigations.
- Churches may gather indoors for any purpose in groups of 50 and less
- Churches with larger rooms may gather indoor groups of up to 25% of the room capacity, but may not exceed 100 people in total
- Churches may gather out-of-doors in groups of any size with proper distancing and masks
- Children and youth ministry programs may occur
- Social distancing, face masks, and other precautions should be taken for all activities
- Churches should not practice group singing
- Church buildings may be open all kinds of groups and meetings of appropriate size, and all church staff and volunteers can regularly use the building
- Facemasks and social distancing are required
Congregational singing and serving of meals and snacks are still not advised until Phase 5. These two activities have been seen as the source of virus spread when churches are at the center of an outbreak.
Because the metrics are very fluid, the regions could move between Wednesday announcements. When this occurs, the church is asked to use prudent judgment and decide based upon the congregation's comfort level.
Vaccinations for clergy
As COVID-19 vaccinations are becoming more widely available, some counties are including clergy in Phase 1A vaccine distribution plans. The Illinois Department of Public Health plan specifically mentions clergy in health care settings, but given the role that many clergy play in providing pastoral and palliative care within various health care settings throughout the state, some counties are including in Phase 1A vaccination distribution all clergy, including pastors of local congregations, who might provide this care even if they are not paid or permanent chaplaincy staff.
Check with your county health department to see which categories of clergy are eligible for priority vaccinations in your community. Of course, clergy who are eligible because of their age, health care occupation, first responder work, or complicating medical conditions should also contact their county health department. Clergy who are not primarily serving in health care settings should consider their eligibility and the availability of vaccinations in order to ethically prioritize those who are most in need or at risk from COVID-19 at this time.
