Rosanne Harrison and Margaret Beattie at Rosanne’s farewell party, July 18
The last time I wrote a report to Corporation, it was March 10. Just a scant few days before lockdown started, and yet the schedule and concerns I described in reporting on the prior four weeks seem like they come from another world entirely.
What work and life look like for all of us have shifted radically in the last four months. It’s extremely difficult to quantify this experience in the way that I used to do in my reports, going over my calendar and listing the services, events, meetings, visits, planning, communication, and other projects that filled my days. And yet, none of those things have ceased; we still worship, we still meet, we still plan, we still communicate – but all of it is done through the medium of the telephone and the internet, with only the occasional in-person encounter, masked and distanced.
I am normally careful to track my work hours so as to maintain boundaries between work and time off, but that went out the window when working from home while responsible for a 12-year-old 24/7. To be honest, it felt like I was simultaneously never really “off work” while also never really able to give it the 100% attention that it deserves. You all were on my mind constantly, and yet I’m sure that many small tasks and concerns slipped through the cracks at various times.
When lockdown started, we had just begun attempting to implement a strategic plan that had been discerned and compiled over the previous few months. We had had one meeting of a task force to review the use of our building and plan how to adapt it for the future. We were hoping to convene a Christian formation committee and start planning a capital campaign. All of that ground to a halt as we “pivoted” to doing church in isolation. We have not forgotten about it, but we don’t know when things will open up/settle down to the extent that we can restart those processes. We are doing what we need to do in order to respond faithfully to the times God has given us, and God will take care of the rest.
We went through Holy Week and Easter all online with just a few weeks’ notice, and although it was strange and certainly unsatisfactory in many ways, it also gave me, at least, a whole new understanding of those central observances of the Christian year.
Mercifully, our congregation has been relatively untouched by the coronavirus itself. A few of us have caught the disease, but nobody has died of it. We have had three deaths in the congregation, from unrelated causes, since March 15: Judy Recine, Rex Buckland, and Monica Bulford. Once we have been given permission to move forward with reopening, we will be able to plan memorial services for these members of our community.
Meanwhile, while we were still in lockdown, George Floyd was murdered in Minneapolis and a wave of outrage and protest spread through, and beyond, our neighbours to the south. I have been enormously encouraged by the openness and generosity of the people of this parish as they have eagerly sought out the stories and wisdom of Black folks and asked what we can do, as a congregation, to make the world a better and less racist place. We have begun with a book group, but we will most definitely not stop there!
We are now moving, slowly and deliberately, toward reopening for public worship, hopefully on September 13. As you will learn when you read the documents and attend the virtual parish meeting on Sunday, it will be a long time before worship looks anything like what we are used to. We are hopeful that we will be able to celebrate the Eucharist again in October, but sharing the wine – and singing together – will be much longer in coming. There will be a lot of emotions to process as we continue to miss many of the things we did together pre-coronavirus. We have every intention of continuing to stream worship via Zoom for the foreseeable future, so that those who are not yet comfortable leaving the house can continue to be connected to the worshiping community, and we pray that the situation will remain stable until there is a vaccine or sufficiently effective treatment to be able to move to Phase IV of reopening.
I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: I have been absolutely blown away by the faith, courage, and generosity of this community as we have faced the coronavirus crisis. The Corporation has met weekly by Zoom to keep things on track. The pastoral care team has made hundreds if not thousands of phone calls. People have made masks; learned how to use unfamiliar technology; delivered each other’s groceries; prayed together daily at Zoom evening prayer; donated their government cheques; supported, forgiven, and encouraged me (among other things, to take time off!); and faced extraordinary challenges with hope and grace. It is a deep blessing and joy to serve this congregation, and although our near future looks very different than it did in February, I have no doubt that we will rise to the occasion, with God’s help.
Peace,
Grace+
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