This afternoon I stood alone in our church sanctuary. I looked around me at the musical instruments that have gone silent, the screens that are dark, and the empty chairs. I saw our communion table and anointing oil sitting, waiting, for our return to celebrate and feast together. I wondered what it will be like to come back. Then as I sat in our dark space set aside for worship I began to wonder.
What if we re-imagined church in light of COVID-19?
This virus which is currently raging around the globe is shaking and changing our paradigms for ministry. It is not the first pandemic to ravage our globe, however, it is the first to strike the U.S. with such intensity in our lifetimes. This is causing many of us to question and ponder our sense of what is normal.
What if this is our new reality for the church? Some have postulated the questions and theories that this could be the beginning of seasonal pandemics. What if long periods each year or every few years of being “closed” or unable to meet in our buildings becomes our new reality?
What would be different about the way we do and think about church?
I will go on the record to say that I think the predictions are a little draconian. I believe, however, the questions that come out of them are essential to our future.
What would the church do differently if we met face-to-face nine months out of the year and virtually for three?
What is it that keeps us from doing these things now?
Finally, even as we think about these things, I want to leave you with a message of hope. This comes from the pen of a friend whose wisdom I value greatly:
Corona Virus: Finding a Realistic Hope Amid Hopelessness
“…all of us can find a realistic hope amid hopelessness.”
Stephen