“Let all that you do be done in love.” First Corinthians 16:14
Our Savior’s Evangelical Lutheran Church is a community in which we love each other and our neighbors. Out of this love, when the novel coronavirus began to spread, we pivoted to online worship, fellowship, and studies, and phone-connected devotions, prayer, conversation, and communion to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. We have chosen caution in order to love our neighbors and care for the most vulnerable among us. Our call is to follow Jesus in loving others above ourselves, making personal sacrifices for the well-being of the whole community. We have recognized that our congregation has a high percentage of those most at risk for adverse effects and death after contracting COVID-19. While the pressure and desire to return to normal is strong, we also wish to make smart and compassionate choices that are based on data rather than our feelings. This document is designed to provide clarity for marking the stages towards gathering in person again, based on local caseload trends. Data will be collected from https://www.health.state.mn.us/diseases/coronavirus/situation.html#dailyc1 and a seven-day rolling average will be charted for each day. A graph of this data is available here: https://gis.stlouiscountymn.gov/portal/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=a845cd8507e54ed1a2c1e66413d6e7cb with a slight delay. We will continue to adapt based on the local levels of risk, while following government requirements at minimum. The current phases level and the risk reduction required measures will be posted at the church and online at our website and Facebook page. As we sing in one of our favorite hymns, “The Church is not a building.” Access to the building may be limited and the methods and precautions of our gathering may be different, but we are the Church of Christ, active, alive, and sharing the good news of Jesus’ love for all. Jesus is with us through these adaptations and will bring us out of this trying time into a good future.