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Wednesday 27 May 2020 Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, Many thanks to those of you who answered our survey about coming back to church. There were many different views with some people wanting to return as soon as possible and others wanting to wait much longer. One thing that a large majority agreed on was how much the online service material was appreciated. We hope to keep providing this even when church is opened. The date of opening church is not yet fixed. We have more things to consider and preparations to make and there will be a council meeting next Tuesday. One thing we will need to have in place is a team of sidespeople, outside and inside the church and the hall to make sure social distancing and other regulations are strictly kept and to record the details of those who attend. We cannot ask anyone over 65 or with any underlying health conditions to do this job. We are currently trying to find enough volunteers who will take on this important task as we cannot open the church without this support. I have already asked a few people but many are unable to commit themselves; if you would be willing to help with this, please let me know. The safety and welfare of all those who visit our church is very close to my heart. There have been several cases where church services have been a cause of the infection spreading. I do not want our church to be part of the problem in any way. Perhaps some people feel that we are being overcautious, and it should be for each person to take their own responsibilities. As your Chaplain, I must consider all our members, and therefore would ask that even if you disagree with me on some aspects, you can also see why we need to take all safety measures seriously and follow all the guidelines we are given. We each have our part to play. Council will be reviewing the measures regularly, and revising them if we can to suit the circumstances. Meanwhile, I hope we can find spiritual resources and nourishment, hope and strength for each day. Tomorrow we will have our lectio divina meeting at 10.30, via zoom. This involves listening to a short passage of Scripture several times with periods of silence in between. At the end of the silence there is an opportunity to share our insights together. It is a wonderful opportunity to meditate on some words of Scripture and allow those words to feed our hearts and minds. If you would like to join us, please let me know and I can send you the link. As we prepare for Pentecost on Sunday, I remind you to pray The Lord's Prayer every day at 12noon and to pray especially 'Thy Kingdom Come' and 'Come, Holy Spirit.' As we prepare to celebrate Pentecost, you might appreciate this poem: Spiritus I used to think of you
With love in Christ,
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