COVID-19 Measures for Indoor Worship

September 29, 2020
in COVID-19, Lift Your Light
Fall 2021 Update

We continue to serve communion wine in the individual cups rather than the common cup, but all other coronavirus measures have been lifted.

We no longer have a designated social distancing seating section.

We continue to ask those exhibiting the symptoms of COVID-19, caring for a loved one who has tested positive or who have tested positive to worship online rather than in person.

June Update

As of 5/29/21, the City of Kenosha has lifted its mask mandate. Masks are not required for our services.

We ask anyone exhibiting any of the symptoms of COVID-19 to worship online rather than in person.

We will continue to make a social distancing section available for those unable to be vaccinated. We will also provide masks and hand sanitizer at the door.

April Worship Update

4/6/21 – Our COVID precautions remain the same throughout our Holy Week services but as of Saturday, April 4 we will be singing throughout the service.

Holy Week Update

3/23/21 – Our COVID precautions remain the same throughout our Holy Week services, and all services delay congregational singing until late in the service. For Easter Vigil, the singing will begin at the Holy Noise which will take place after the sermon; we will sing the short liturgical responses to the Exultet.

October Worship Update

Praise God for a place to meet together for October! Pastors Brad and Milt of The Furnace have invited us to use their space at 5250 58th Street in downtown Kenosha. We are grateful for their generosity and the greater potential to work with other congregations in Kenosha.

As we move our worship service indoors, we must adjust our measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Our precautions are based on the recommendations in the booklet Facing COVID Without Panic: 12 Common Myths and 12 Lesser Known Facts About the Pandemic by Daniel T. Halperin, PhD. This information is being used to inform church reopenings in many ACNA churches.

This post is broken into 2 major sections: the measures we ask you to take and the measures we are taking. The measures are listed at the top of each section, with detailed information underneath. There is also a section of miscellaneous precautions at the bottom.

Our goal is for as many of our Light of Christ regular attenders to be comfortable in our in-person worship setting as possible. These last 2 Sundays of September it has been wonderful to see those of you with less concerns masking up, and those of you with more concerns moving with greater freedom in the congregation. We pray that this grace and gentleness with one another will continue as we move inside. 

If you have any concerns about these precautions, please contact Fr. Eirik.

What We Ask: Congregational Measures

Those exhibiting any of the symptoms of COVID-19 should worship online rather than in person.

Those symptoms are:

  • Fever or chills
  • Cough
  • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
  • Fatigue
  • Muscle or body aches
  • Headache
  • New loss of taste or smell
  • Sore throat
  • Congestion or runny nose
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Diarrhea

Read more about symptoms on the CDC website

We Ask…

  • That if you are experiencing any of these symptoms, you refrain from attending worship in person and attend via Facebook Live or YouTube instead.
  • If you or a family member are ill, please let us know!

Masks are required for adults and children aged 5 and above, with exceptions for medical reasons. 

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers recently extended the indoor mask mandate until November 21 and we will be complying with that mandate.

While the data is not definitive on this issue, Dr. Halperin states “…Pending further research and in populations where the coronavirus is circulating widely, a universal norm of wearing cloth masks in crowded (especially indoor) settings is a useful complementary public health measure (pg. 24).” This is especially true in an indoor setting where singing is occurring.

Dr. Halperin also notes that wearing masks can exacerbate existing medical conditions (pg.23). If wearing a mask for a prolonged period of time causes you breathing difficulty, faintness or headaches, you may opt out of wearing a mask. If you are able, wear a mask unless you are seated.

The Wisconsin mask mandate requires masks for children ages 5 and up and encourages them for ages 2-5. If your children have trouble wearing masks, they may remove them when seated.

We Ask….

  • That upon entering the building until exiting all persons medically able to wear a mask.
  • Those who have trouble wearing a mask for medical reasons or age may remove it when seated.

Practice social distancing.

Along with mask wearing, social distancing is the best thing we can do to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. That said, Dr. Halperin says the “six feet rule” was created as well-meaning agencies added padding to the WHO’s original suggested distance of 1 meter, a little over 3 feet (pg. 24).

Dr. Halperin coined the term “facial distancing” to reflect the fact that it isn’t the distancing between our bodies that is the issue, it is the distance between our faces that is important. Church settings where all are facing forward or facing a central point in a large circle are safer than settings where people face each other across a small table or sit in small circles. If hugs are exchanged, it is safer if both persons turn their faces to opposite sides (p. 25).

We Ask…

  • When seating yourself for worship, find a spot where there is about six feet between your head and the heads of the people closest to you.
  • When socializing after worship make sure you and the person you are speaking with are  comfortable with the distance between you.
  • Please do not congregate around the exit–leave plenty of space for people to enter and exit freely.

What We’re Doing: Our Precautions

Distribute communion with physical distancing and sanitation measures.

We will continue to use the measures instituted on Palm Sunday to ensure the host remains free from the virus:

  • On the Friday before Sunday, the communion wafers will be placed in the lexan box used by Fr. Eirik, giving a 48 hr buffer between being handled.
  • The Eucharist table will be sanitized and set before the service.
  • After performing the Eucharist liturgy, Fr. Eirik and the Eucharist distributors will put on their masks, use hand sanitizer and then open the lexan box to remove the host for distribution.
  • Fr. Eirik or a Eucharist minister will come to each family and communicate one member, dropping the host into their hand. That family member will then communicate the host to the rest of their family.

Speak & sing with a minimum of 6’ of distance between us & you.

Governor Evers mask mandate includes a provision for speakers and other presenters to remove their masks as long as there is six feet between the presenter and other individuals. 

If you are reading or praying during the service, you may remove your mask before speaking and stand 6’ away from others.

Other Precautions

Sanitizing the Space

Sanitizing wipes will be available if you would like to wipe down your seat, and hand sanitizer will continue to be available.

Restrooms

Just as in the Olsen home, we ask that you sanitize and wipe down any surfaces you used after using the restroom.

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