It is an interesting thing to write a newsletter when we ...



It is an interesting thing to write a newsletter when we don’t really know what we will be able to do in the month to come… Your calendar on the back has certain dates listed – Maundy Thursday Worship, Easter Egg Hunt, Easter Breakfast and worship, and so on – but we simply do not yet know (as of this writing) if we will be able to proceed with any of those activities as we normally would. Maybe we’ll be allowed to gather, in which case we’ll do much of what we would normally do. Or maybe we’ll have to continue to adapt and practice a “flexible spirituality.”We have all known for a long time, since our PE teachers and coaches taught us back in elementary school, that flexibility is a key feature of a healthy body. I remember doing the sit-and-stretch test for the “presidential fitness test” back at Lakeside Elementary in Springfield Township, OH, and the care we took before Cross Country and Track practices – and even before Spring Musicals at Winton Woods High School – to warm up and stretch before activity and to cool down and stretch afterwards. In addition, I remember traveling throughout SE Asia and West African with two Youth Encounter Ministry Teams, when much of what we expected to happen didn’t and much of the unexpected is what we experienced. We were trained to “have a plan, but be flexible.” That was the absolute best advice we could have received, and it has proven invaluable beyond those two years, into the decade that has followed.In the midst of this COVID-19 crisis, we are all learning new ways of being flexible – parents staying at home with kids and trying to foster continued learning, incomes affected for many who live paycheck-to-paycheck, regular medical appointments cancelled unless absolutely necessary, and for faith communities, drastic changes to our regular worship practices. We can only plan so much, and we need to remain flexible. Please pay attention to the Church website, Facebook page, and word-of-mouth network to obtain the latest information on how St. John is addressing this moment in time.For the sake of this newsletter, then, let us assume that things across the state of Iowa remain shut down through the entire month of April (maybe not the best-case scenario, but some of the chatter by the media points to the possibility of shut-downs through the summer…). If we’re still “Shut down” for Palm Sunday and Easter, what are we going to do? Here’s my tentative plan, subject to change (practice that flexibility!):We’ll continue to do our “Virtual Worship” on Sunday mornings as long as we continue to need this service and have the streaming rights to do so. Any other events beyond Sunday morning worship will be cancelled until a new normal schedule is established. [Due to copyright laws and associated costs, we may not be able to continue this after the temporary free streaming rights have ended. If you’re interested in making this option continue, talk to me, and we’ll see what we can do!] Our first Virtual Worship was a success, with 55 concurrent views from California to Florida and many places in between. I estimate 80-100 people engaged with the live stream, and more who watched later.April 5, Palm Sunday – our palm branches will be arriving sometime in the week prior. I’ll glove up, mask up, and set them out at church. During designated hours (TBD), you can come by the church and pick up a palm branch for use during Sunday’s worship. We’ll worship online as we are able, as we did March 22 and 29.April 12, Easter Sunday – I’ll do a 7:30am Sunrise Virtual Worship via livestream. If things remain closed, obviously there will be no breakfast. At our 10:30 normal worship time, I will offer “drive-through Communion.” Communion wafers and individual, disposable cups will be prepared beforehand by gloved-and-masked helpers. Right at 10:30, I will speak Easter Sunday gospel lesson, the Words of Institution and the Eucharistic Prayer, and we’ll have the Lord’s Prayer. After that, I’ll try to arrange for the Gospel lesson to be playing on repeat via speaker, and individuals may drive up to the South door (main parking lot), where you will be served communion through your car windows by gloved-and masked servers. In this way, we can mark the Easter promise of New Life by celebrating the sacrament of Holy Communion. (Password will be “He is Risen! Alleluia!”)As a reminder, this is just a plan, and things may be adjusted as we move forward. Flexibility is a sign of health – both in our bodies and in The Body of Christ, the Church. Blessings to you during this time. I’m available by phone, email, or text for pastoral care, and by appointment for individual visits. Peace ><>, Pastor Luke ................
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