COVID 19 and In Person Worship

We have all grown so accustomed to the words “unprecedented” and “uncertain” since March of 2020 that they have likely lost much of their meaning. We continue to meet the ongoing challenges of this global pandemic individually, as family units and as a faith community. The Church Council of FCC continues to revisit the risks and benefits of reopening for in person worship. The rollout of vaccination efforts have provided some hope and light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. 

However, caution is still needed. Over the past months, Council, Rev. Nate, Jaimie and our in house COVID 19 advisor, Linda Weatherbee, have looked at research and recommendations from epidemiologists, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other COVID 19 experts for the risks and benefits of reopening to in person worship given current vaccine availability. Meanwhile, Michigan was just at the onset of a fourth surge of the pandemic. The number of new cases and hospitalizations continues to rise locally, as younger people increase the spread of the disease within unvaccinated populations and several variants of the coronavirus emerge.

Church leadership is closely monitoring ongoing research (especially regarding singing and other church related rituals) and local COVID 19 case numbers. With expanded vaccination access, we are hopeful and praying that vaccination efforts will be effective in curbing this surge and the spread of the virus. Until case numbers drop and vaccines are available to a broader population, FCCBC will continue to hold online only worship. However, small group gatherings--especially when held outdoors and between those that have been fully vaccinated--pose a much lower risk. We are hoping to strengthen and expand our current small group offerings to provide opportunities for connection, fellowship and healing within our faith community in the coming months.