Session unveils plan to resume public worship.

Good afternoon, friends and family!

Ever since Texas Governor Abbott chose to begin a phased reopening of Texas, Redeemer’s staff, pastors and Session have been carefully considering the emerging situation and its impact on Redeemer. Last night the Session was able to meet and formulated a plan to allow Redeemer to gather again for public worship at our downtown facility starting on Pentecost Sunday, May 31^st. This plan is cautious and is in full compliance with our governor’s recommendations, which were provided to churches on April 27, 2020. In addition, please know that your Session deliberated carefully on the details of this plan and considered the varying implications of competing choices. Though less than ideal, the Session believes this plan affords Redeemer the best opportunity for public worship that is both in-person and safe.

How will this work?

As indicated above, Sunday gathered worship will resume on May 31^st with limited capacity for adults and children. We will hold three identical worship services (each will offer communion) at 8:00 a.m., 9:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. at our downtown facility. Each service will have a limit of approximately 177 worshippers, which is in step with Governor Abbott’s seating guidelines and corresponds to roughly 40% capacity of our sanctuary.

Given these constraints, public worship will not be available to everyone on every Sunday, but we have formulated a plan that allows us to welcome each member to a service every other Sunday. The Session has chosen to formulate six groupings that encompass the entire congregation and roughly correspond to Redeemer Community Groups/Shepherding Groups. Each group will be given a specific date and time for worship. Groups will rotate to different service times as the schedule proceeds. It is hoped that in this way, all desiring to gather for public worship will be able to do so. We will continue to provide a livestreamed service at 11 a.m. on Sunday mornings via Facebook, YouTube and the Redeemer Web site for those not scheduled for public worship on a given week or for those who do not desire to gather publicly.

This plan will be revisited periodically by the Session and adjusted in accord with the guidance of our civil authorities and practices that ensure the safety of the Redeemer community.

What do we promise?

I want you to know that your Session regards your health and safety as the upmost of priorities. Therefore, in addition to limitations on worship size, the Session has chosen  not to offer a nursery and to forgo Training in the Pews at this time to promote strict social-distancing protocols. In addition, Redeemer asks that all greeter/ushers and worship attenders wear face masks, frequently wash hands thoroughly and use sanitizer provided throughout the building. Our communion preparers will also wear both gloves and mask while they perform their responsibilities. Finally, Redeemer will adopt health protocols that limit the capacity of our bathrooms and ensures that bathrooms are cleaned frequently on Sunday mornings.

How will this change our worship service?

I know that the worship service at Redeemer is special to each of us, and for this reason we expect only a few adjustments to our regular pattern or liturgy of service. With the exception of Training in the Pews, all elements will continue. However, to practice safe social-distancing we will adjust our practices of the Greeting of Peace, The Eucharist, and the Offering. During the Greeting of Peace, members should not express affection for one another in the typical ways, but limit interactions to an encouraging word. While we will continue to come forward for communion, the elements will be distributed by a single pastor who will be wearing both a mask and gloves. The offering will be collected through collection boxes located at each sanctuary door. Congregants will have opportunity to offer their gifts after receiving communion.

In addition, every other row in the sanctuary will be left empty, and worshippers are asked to leave two seats between each family unit sitting on usable rows. Your bulletin will be distributed prior to the service and safely placed on usable seats within each row.

What are we asking you to do?

Personally, I cannot wait to join together again for public worship. The absence that has been forced upon us due to COVID-19 has made me cherish our relationships all the more. At the same time, resuming worship in this way is not a return to the “normal” way of doing things. Therefore, your Session asks that we all continue to practice charity, humility and patience during this anxious season. Because we do not all share the same convictions or have the same level of concern regarding COVID-19, it is incumbent that we go the extra mile in order to love our neighbor and show our respect where we may disagree.

As already noted above, this plan is less than ideal. Your Session is well aware that certain aspects of this plan will be less attractive than others. It is hoped that after several Sundays, certain aspects of the plan may become adjustable that will allow for greater numbers of worshippers on each Sunday, thereby limiting the number who are required to stay home. Even so, the live-streaming opportunity ensures that you are able to worship, even if remotely.

In addition to this counsel, your Session specifically asks you to observe the following:

• If you are sick, have chills, sore throat or shortness of breath, are feverish, or have other signs of illness, we ask that you remain at home.
• If you have been directly exposed to COVID-19 or tested positive, we ask that you remain at home until a doctor gives you permission to return to public activities.
• While you are at the downtown facility, we ask that you follow safe social-distancing protocols and refrain from physical contact.
• We are asking that all worshippers bring a mask to wear during worship or use the ones that Redeemer usher/greeters provide.
• When the worship service has concluded, we ask that you exit through the assigned sanctuary doors and immediately depart the building through the assigned exits.
• Per the governor’s recommendations, if you are a member of the at-risk population (defined as those who are 65 or older, or have the following conditions: chronic lung disease, moderate to severe asthma; chronic heart disease; severe obesity; diabetes; chronic kidney disease undergoing dialysis; liver disease; or weakened immune system), you are strongly encouraged to remain at home and worship remotely for your safety.

Keep in mind that you will have opportunity to interact with me about this letter and the Session’s plan to resume public worship during next week’s Pastor’s Forum on Tuesday at noon, which is livestreamed via Facebook, YouTube and the Redeemer website.

Finally, these are trying times for God’s people. There have been few times in our history where we have more felt the relevance of our faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is to him that we must turn in our time of need. He is both the anchor who holds us tight and the example that we follow in our service of the kingdom. So, let us all be prayerful, both for the witness that we offer to our city and love that we show to one another.