Is MERCYhouse MEETING this Sunday?
by Robert Krumrey
Most of you have probably heard that on 5/18/20 the governor of Massachusetts officially reopened our state according to “phase one” of their reopening protocol. This includes permission being given to churches to reopen their services at 40 percent of capacity while wearing masks, keeping socially distant, and not providing childcare. As of today (5/19/20), we are planning to continue hosting virtual services only and do not plan to meet in person for the remaining Sundays of the month of June 2020 (and possibly longer?). We’ve made this decision based on the following reasons:
Difficulty keeping children socially distant in the service
Severe limits placed on connecting (no hugs or social gatherings allowed before or after)
Continuing threat of infection and desire to not be cause for community spread
As we get closer to the reopening, we will put a plan in place that will most likely look like the following:
Phase one: Attendees can participate by reservations only for in-person worship to “try things out” in the sanctuary
Phase two: Continued reservations for in-person worship plus some walk-ins