Pastoral Plan Update for In-Person Worship (March 2021)
28 March 2021
Dear Sisters, Brothers, Siblings,
Grace and peace be with you in Jesus, the Crucified and Risen One!
After several conversations with Dr. Greg Poland, a vaccinologist and infectious diseases expert and head of Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine Research Group, and in consultation with our missioners, I have decided to amend our Pastoral Plan for In-person Worship. These accommodations were shared with Clergy and Lay Leaders during our ZOOM Call on Wednesday, 24 March. A Summary Notes document from Dr. Poland was also shared with the Clergy and Lay Leaders.
I would like to identify the protocols that remain in place for all in-person worship:
Any person not feeling well, experiencing symptoms including fever, coughing, sneezing, is asked to remain at home, consider getting a COVID 19 test and if necessary, call your health care provider.
Continue physical distancing of 6 feet.
Well ventilated space.
25% of full capacity
Appropriate masks worn properly.
Having hand sanitizer available.
Continued contact tracing.
For those faith communities that have chosen to offer in-person worship, it is important to underscore that a hybrid experience of in-person and virtual worship should continue to be offered so that everyone connected to your faith community may join in worship.
Another adaptation that has been made is the opportunity for 4 to 8 people in a choir to sing in-person physically distanced and properly masked, in the setting of 25 % of full capacity in a well-ventilated space. Those gathered for in-person worship, observing the protocols above, can sing softly while properly masked. You are also encouraged to continue to check the State of Indiana Coronavirus Dashboard on a weekly basis.
An updated checklist can be found here. If you have any questions, please contact me or one of our missioners. We stand ready to continue to support you in any way we can.
Lastly, I give thanks to God for all those who have given of themselves, in so many ways, during this pandemic. I also encourage you to get vaccinated and if you have questions or concerns, discuss them with your health care provider. COVID 19 fatigue is real, even with the availability of the COVID 19 vaccines, we must remain diligent in attending to these safety protocols.
Be assured of my prayer and support. Please thank your clergy and lay leaders for their good work on your behalf.
This comes with a brother’s love…
Doug
The Rt. Rev. Dr. Douglas E. Sparks
VIII Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana
Resources:
Download the Revised COVID-19 Regathering Checklist (Rev. 3/28/21)
Questions to consider when planning to safely regather in-person (Rev. 3/28/21)
Listen to the recording of the Clergy/Lay Leader Zoom call from March 24, 2021
Summary notes from Bishop Doug’s conversation with Dr. Greg Poland
Update: Per guidance from Gov. Holcomb, if the state has labeled your county as orange, then no more than 50 people are permitted for an in-person gathering. If your county is labeled as red, then no more than 25 people are permitted for an in-person gathering.
Pastoral Letter - Update for In-Person Regathering
24 September 2020
Dear Sisters, Brothers, Siblings,
Grace and peace be with you in Jesus, the Light for all people!
As of 13 September, we have lived with the consequences of the COVID 19 pandemic for 6 months. Those consequences include, as of today in the United States, 7,135,603 persons who have tested positive with COVID 19 and 206,482 deaths due to COVID 19. Other consequences include the loss of employment for millions which has led the loss of health insurance not to mention the challenges for many trying to navigate online learning for their children as well as working remotely themselves or caring for a loved one in a care facility. Along the way, our missioners and I have done our best to consult with others about best practices, develop our Plan for Regathering for In-person Worship initially adopted in mid-May and identify platforms to enhance the information available regarding all of the data and measurements used to determine a way forward for us.
In late March, I convened a Diocesan Disaster / Crisis Team comprised of Canon Terri Bays, Canon Carol Bianchini, Canon Christopher Hillak, Canon Michelle Walker and Bishop Frank Gray. We began meeting weekly via ZOOM on 6 April. I want to thank each of them for the difficult and challenging work they have done and continue to do on our behalf. In consultation with other dioceses in Province V and the wider church, we developed the Plan for Regathering for In-person Worship. Thanks to Fr.TJ Freeman, serving as Rector of Trinity Fort Wayne, in July, we were directed to the Harvard website which helped us adopt the Determination Color Code based on the number of cases per 100K in each of our counties in addition to the State of Indiana Dashboard.
We know more in September regarding the spread of COVID 19 than we did in June which makes it possible to adapt our initial plan for Regathering. The Episcopal Dioceses in Michigan began allowing 25 % of full capacity for indoor In-person Worship, which includes the protocols of physical distancing, wearing masks, using hand sanitizer along with all the other protocols in our Diocesan Plan. In consultation with our Clergy, with the support and affirmation of our Diocesan Council and with the support of our Standing Committee, I have decided to implement the “ Michigan Adaptation” for all of our faith communities in Northern Indiana. In doing so, I want to invoke the Anglican principle, all may, none must, some should. Implementing this adaptation assumes that the clergy, wardens, and vestry of our 33 faith communities have prepared and submitted a Plan for Regathering for my review and approval. As of this writing, 24 faith communities have submitted a plan. Some of our faith communities will move to implement this adaptation this coming Sunday. Others may choose to take some time to make sure all things necessary are in place before gathering in person. What is most important to underscore is that each of our faith communities needs to listen to local officials, following their advice which may include closing if advised to do so.
For those faith communities who choose to move to indoor In-person Worship, it is also important to underscore that this next phase should be a Hybrid Phase…both in-person and virtual worship should be offered so that everyone connected to your faith community may continue to gather.
As I said earlier, we have learned some things since March and April. First, as we moved out of lock down, the potential for achieving a 14-day decline in some of our more populated counties is virtually impossible. Second, more testing is available in our state which gives us better sense of the positivity rate, another factor in determining the spread of the virus. Third, the state has assumed responsibility for contact tracing which initially was the responsibility of each county.
Bishop Andy Doyle of the Diocese of Texas sent a letter to the clergy in mid-June. He discussed several important topics: exposure and moral leadership. In terms of exposure, he quoted leading epidemiologist from the University of Minnesota, Dr. Michael Osterholm who said, “Exposure as a dose is a combination of time and amount.” Exposure = time and amount. Therefore, physical distancing, mask and brevity are essential for congregations in buildings. This means as you do gather, we believe you need to keep the service short, between 30 and 45 minutes.
Regarding moral leadership, Bishop Doyle pointed out that early in the pandemic, we were presented with two strong binary options: lockdown or do nothing. We have come to understand that moral leadership requires protocols for everyone’s safety. Hence, that is why developing your Plan for Regathering is essential and that we may need to adapt our protocols, as the circumstances change. Bishop Doyle then shared another quote from Dr. Osterholm, “We have to learn not only to die with this virus, which tragically we’ve had to do, but we also have to learn how to live with it.”
So, my friends, what is required of all of us is wisdom, attention to implementing the Plan for Regathering in your context, directed by your clergy, wardens and vestry and moral leadership.
If you have any questions, please contact me or one of our missioners. We stand ready to continue to support you in any way that we can.
I conclude, quoting Bishop Andy Doyle, in his letter to the clergy. “This is hard and difficult work. It is very difficult to do this work when your peers are not making the same choices. It is challenging when parishioners push and pull at you. I want to re-emphasize that we will support you if you open now, or later, if you close due to community spread, and when you are defending protocols against parishioner pushback.” These sentiments are also true for the wardens and vestry members of our faith communities as they try make the best decisions possible.
Be assured of my prayer and support. This comes with a brother’s love…
Doug
The Rt. Rev. Douglas E. Sparks
VIII Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana
Pastoral Plan: COVID-19 (May 11, 2020)
Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana Pastoral Plan for Regathering for In-person Worship
“Glory to God whose power, working in us can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to God from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.”
May 11, 2020
Dear Sisters, Brothers, Siblings,
The Rt. Rev. Dr. Douglas E. Sparks
VIII Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana
We know our world, our lives, and our church have changed drastically since the emergence of COVID-19. The past few weeks have been filled with sorrows and blessings, challenges and opportunities, losses and celebrations. There is much to grieve and to celebrate. I am reminded of the words of a song that is a source of hope and solace for me and many others.
“If you pass through raging waters in the sea, you shall not drown.
If you walk amid the burning flames, you shall not be harmed.
If you stand before the power of hell and death is at your side,
Know that I am with you through it all.
Be not afraid. I go before you always.
Come follow Me, and I will give you rest.”
— Footnote1 by Bob Dufford © Oregon Catholic Press
On Friday, May 1, Indiana Governor Holcomb released a five staged plan entitled “Back on Track” Indiana. The plan identifies “four guiding principles that will determine if stages to reopen various sectors of the economy will move forward.” I believe we need to move forward more prudently, which is why Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows and I issued our Joint Statement last Friday.
Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, in his Word to the Church wrote, “As our seasons of life in the COVID-19 world continue to turn, we are called to continue to be creative, to risk, to love. We are called to ask, what would unselfish, sacrificial love do?”
I believe unselfish, sacrificial love requires abstaining a while longer from in-person worship in our church buildings. We will continue to offer virtual worship throughout the month of May as our faith communities develop a plan for in - person worship to be implemented, hopefully in June. In order for in-person worship to occur, the following Four Criteria need to be met:
The number of COVID-19 cases has to have decreased in your county for 14 days.
Your county retains the ability to test all Hoosiers who are COVID-19 symptomatic.
Health officials in your county have systems in place to contact all individuals who test positive for COVID-19 and complete contact tracing.
A plan to safely re-gather for in-person worship has been developed and received approval from the Bishop.
A link to the Indiana State Department of Health COVID-19 website, where your county’s information can be found, is available here. When these criteria have been met, the Bishop’s office may give permission to return to in-person worship, following appropriate guidelines as outlined in this document and in recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the local Department of Health and Public Safety. That being said, even when in-person worship resumes, we will not “get back to normal” for some time.
Just to be clear, May 24 is the earliest date at which we may begin a slow, deliberate, step-by-step return to opening buildings in the diocese. In concert with the Indiana Stage 1 restrictions, the person count will be capped at ten, with masks, hand sanitizing and physical distancing in effect.
Because state guidelines urge those who are 65 and older, and those who have compromising health concerns to stay home during Phases 1-3, those who gather are encouraged to provide live-streamed worship for those not physically present.
For faith communities where substantial portions of the clergy and laity are 65 and older or have compromising health concerns, more creative approaches may be in order so as to protect the health and well-being of all concerned.
The Missioners and I support you in the decision to approach re-gathering at a more cautious pace and are happy to help you work through any challenges.
While the last eight weeks have been complicated, confusing and challenging, they have also provided an opportunity to deepen our relationships with one another, to pray for each other and to support one another in new and different ways. I am so grateful for the many gifts you have offered to move us into a new way of praying, gathering, worshiping, studying the scriptures, being formed in faith and offering pastoral care. It is a new way of living out the 5 Marks of Mission…to tell, teach, tend, transform and treasure!
The general guidance that follows is intended to address this new reality in which we find ourselves and the practical reality of continuing the work of Christ in the world. It is intended to be a resource for clergy and vestries to consider in advance of offering in-person worship. Setting clear expectations, and sharing plans with our communities in advance, will help tremendously in making the return to in-person worship joyful, meaningful, and above all safe.
There is so much we do not know about the COVID-19 virus. But we do know that our faith communities are unique. It will be up to each faith community, and indeed each individual, to accept responsibility for their own health and safety and to consider the safety of others. Each person participating in in-person worship will do so at their own risk.
Public Health Guidelines
As any plans are being developed, familiarize your Vestry with federal, state, and local orders and guidelines that apply to your faith community. In the Diocese of Northern Indiana, we are committed to revising these policies as necessary. These policies will change in the months to come. What seems appropriate today or next week may be revised or may no longer apply in a month or in six months.
This comes with a brother’s love,
Doug
The Rt. Rev. Dr. Douglas E. Sparks
VIII Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana
Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana Pastoral Plan for Regathering for In-person Worship
(version 1.0)
TIMELINE
INTRODUCTION
We are grateful to the Episcopal Dioceses of Georgia and Missouri whose work serves as the foundation for these guidelines. These guidelines are intended to be an aid in developing a plan for each faith community taking context and demographics into consideration.
FOUR CRITERIA
In order for in-person worship to occur, the following Four Criteria need to be met:
The number of COVID-19 cases has to have decreased in your county for 14 days.
Your county retains the ability to test all Hoosiers who are COVID-19 symptomatic.
Health officials in your county have systems in place to contact all individuals who test positive for COVID-19 and complete contact tracing.
A plan to safely re-gather for in-person worship has been developed and received approval from the Bishop.
CONTINUE ONLINE VIRTUAL WORSHIP
Even when in-person worship is allowed, some within our communities will be appropriately concerned about returning. It will be helpful to continue practices you have developed during the sheltering-in-place orders, whether that is creating your own online offerings or encouraging the congregation to attend online worship offered by other congregations across The Episcopal Church. Worshiping with other faith communities in this way is an excellent opportunity to promote fellowship across the Church. Do not automatically assume that continuing to provide everything you have been offering online will be sustainable for your personal workload. Inviting others to engage with leading online worship opportunities will be a key component to this transition. We recognize that transitioning to in-person worship at this time may seem overwhelming. Move slower if that is what is best for your faith community while continuing to offer online worship opportunities.
IN-PERSON WORSHIP
While the physical distancing is in place, the return to in–person worship in a confined space will need to include:
Keeping at least six feet between all persons who do not live in the same household.
Wearing face coverings at all times, as a form of protection for others and a way of normalizing this practice for everyone.
Making announcements at the beginning of worship to reinforce expected norms.
This spacing is also recommended for any contact our parishioners may have. Have a coffee hour that does not include serving any food or beverages while these guidelines remain in place. This will not prevent people from talking to one another, but it will reduce the temptation towards unsafe behaviors. We want to encourage people to safely interact with one another, yet we cannot control behavior. The responsibility for keeping at least six feet between persons lies with each individual. We can, however, name the norms for our gatherings, ask everyone to abide by them, and even request that people not participate if they cannot abide by them.
CHANGING THE SCHEDULE AND LOCATION FOR IN-PERSON WORSHIP
As a result of the limitations on the number who can gather and how much distancing is required, your worship space may not safely accommodate all who wish to gather for a liturgy. Adding additional liturgies or moving to a larger space, like a parish hall or an outdoor setting, will help people keep safe physical distance. Consider how you might divide worship services, including asking people with last names beginning with A-K to attend one of the new options and L-Z the other. Also, decide who will keep a count on those in worship and how you will ask those arriving after the capacity has been reached to wait until a later service.
SANITIZING THE CHURCH BUILDINGS AND USE BY OUTSIDE GROUPS
Prior to resuming in-person worship, all common areas in the worship space should be thoroughly cleaned. Using a professional cleaning service is highly recommended.
When in-person worship resumes, hard surfaces should be cleaned after each gathering and in between each in a series of worship services in the same space. There should also be a thorough final cleaning after all but the cleaning crew have left the church grounds. If nothing else is scheduled in your space, you may consider doing the final cleaning a few days after your service, in order to let any possibility of the virus die before cleaners come into contact.
For groups that meet outside the regular worshipping community, A.A., Contractors, Quilters etc., have a plan for how they will use and clean the building after each use.
Here is the Re-opening Guidance for Cleaning and Disinfecting Public Spaces, Workplaces, Businesses, Schools and Homes from the CDC.
GREETING AND HANDOUTS
As we gather for in-person worship, we may still need to use printed materials in order to make first time visitors feel welcome. Where possible, email bulletins to the congregation and invite them to use their tablets or smart phones in worship. Have a greeter or usher, standing six feet away, staff a welcome table with the needed materials available for pick-up. The greeter can offer a welcome, answer questions from a safe distance and even email or text digital materials on the spot.
To avoid people touching door handles/knobs, keep the church doors open during worship. Consider using handouts that can be taken home after worship or recycled, but not re-used. Have masks available for members and visitors to wear and take home afterwards.
MUSIC
In a joint webinar presented by Chorus America, American Choral Directors Association, National Association of Teachers of Singing, Barbershop Harmony Society and the Performing Arts Medical Association, in-person singing has been identified as a particular concern of spreading COVID-19 infections much further than six feet. Until the risks of singing and playing wind instruments are better understood as a means of transmission, singing and the use of wind instruments during in-person worship is not permitted. Pre-recording of singing or playing wind instruments is also not permitted in our buildings. This includes choral singing, congregational singing, singing by cantors and soloists, and chanting by the presider. The use of instrumental music (i.e. organ, piano, guitar; not brass or woodwind) or pre-recorded music is recommended for in-person gatherings.
PASSING THE PEACE
Although the peace is often a time of social interaction in most communities of faith, while the physical distancing measures are in place we need to have touch-free greetings at the peace with no shaking hands and no hugging. Clergy and lay leaders in worship should model a wave or a bow while staying in place.
OFFERING PLATES AND GIVING
The practice of “passing the plate” is to be discontinued during this time. The offering plates should be placed visibly within the community gathered and offerings can be placed during the offertory in one location. In advance of worship, set the expectation of online giving or mailing in checks.
WORSHIP SERVICES INCLUDING THE HOLY EUCHARIST
Offering the Holy Eucharist safely will continue to be a challenge, as touching a face mask (to remove or shift it) contaminates it. Proximity to the communicant is a risk to the communion minister and those receiving. Give serious consideration to options within your tradition that minimize contact. This may mean you need to further postpone offering Communion. If you choose not to offer Eucharist, you may offer Morning Prayer on Sunday morning.
Those choosing to offer Eucharist in response to that expectation must put in place a plan for safe administration. Think through how you will minimize person-to-person contact for administering the sacrament; consider using tongs to place the consecrated wafer in their hands; how you will sanitize and re-sanitize while you administer the sacrament; and, how you will orchestrate your movements. This will vary for each faith community and space. Consider how persons can come forward, one household at a time, and return to their seats without getting too close to others.
Lay and ordained persons assisting or presiding at in-person worship must wear a face covering. Cover the elements being consecrated. The Book of Common Prayer, at the time of consecration, states that; “At the following words concerning the bread, the Celebrant is to hold it, or to lay a hand upon it; and at the words concerning the cup, to hold or place a hand upon the cup and any other vessel containing wine to be consecrated.” Consecration therefore can be accomplished with minimal contact for reasons of safety.
OFFICES AND BUILDING ADMINISTRATION
Keep office functions as limited as possible to ensure essential operations. Those in the office should be wearing masks; if you have more than one person in the office, make sure that surfaces, including the phone, are regularly sanitized.
RITES OF PASSAGE
Rites of Passage (baptisms, confirmations, weddings, funerals) may take place with careful attention to those participating so as to keep under the gathering limit, and with physical distancing plans.
BIBLE STUDY, FAITH FORMATION, YOUTH MINISTRY
We encourage these gatherings to take place virtually until it is possible to gather in person according to the timeline above and assuming all four criteria are met, face coverings and physical distancing are required.
NURSERY CARE
Given the challenges of maintaining physical distancing in the care of young children in the nursery, this ministry will be discontinued until further notice.
CORRECTING UNSAFE PRACTICES
Some parishioners will stand too close to others, offer a hand to shake, or a hug. This is going to happen. Teach everyone the safe practices you intend to keep, in advance. Remind your community of faith that each person is responsible for themselves. Give parishioners or vestry persons who have the gift of offering a gracious word the task of guiding those who struggle to change their behavior. Consider that some parishioners may need to be gently encouraged to stay home a little longer.
REVISIT YOUR PLAN REGULARLY
Do - Reflect - Revise - Do. This will be important as we return to in-person gatherings. Make a plan, carry it out, and then have a follow up meeting to reflect on how it went and what needs to change. An iterative process will be necessary to make the adjustments based on experience. As you find things that work or don’t work, please share them with the rest of us so that we can all learn from each other.
QUESTIONS FOR CHURCH LEADERSHIP TO CONSIDER
We offer this list of questions for the leadership of each worshiping community to consider in devising a plan for in-person worship. We recommend that you work through these questions before re-launch:
How will you maintain online streaming and how will that need to adjust when there is also in-person worship happening?
How many people can your worship space hold if you are worshiping in family groups sitting six feet apart?
How will you discourage the receiving line after church and/or congregating after worship services?
How will you cap attendance at events so there is room for members of the community to join you and so you don’t go over gathering limits?
What should be done with small groups who have shifted to meeting online? How might you continue these when in-person worship resumes?
How will you ensure sanitation and disinfection with regard to communal spaces?
Worship bulletin disposal, prayer books, etc.;
Pews or chairs following worship;
Doorknobs, bathrooms, other areas that people touch when in your building.
How will you update your building use agreements to reflect the new realities of COVID-19?
If someone contracts COVID-19, how will you communicate with your congregation and members who may have come into contact with that individual while maintaining privacy and pastoral care?
If someone who has been in your building contracts COVID-19, how will you do a more intensive cleaning prior to its next use?
How will you communicate your safety plan and best practices to the congregation?
RESOURCES
Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana
Pastoral Plan for Regathering for In-person Worship Checklist
Word document or PDFEDNIN COVID-19 Resources
State of Indiana
Governor Holcomb’s Back On Track Indiana
County
County COVID-19 Data Report (Sample; locate report for your specific county)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Miscellaneous