All Saints COVID Respite Plan
Clergy, staff, and parish leaders are preparing for summer and ways to realize our COVID respite plans as encouraged by our bishops and authorized by the vestry in April. We hope that everyone at All Saints will find times of rest and renewal this summer. Everyone is encouraged to engage in or reflect on activities that are most restorative for them. Worship services will be held every Sunday morning at 10:30 am this summer, and live streaming of services will continue. Pastoral care will continue uninterrupted, and evening staff will ensure the building is open for facility users. Below is an outline of activities that will be paused or modified for the summer.
- 22 May —Breakfast Club and church school began their regular summer hiatus. Breakfast Club and church school resume 18 September. Registration begins mid-August.
- 5 June—Adult Choir and Schola begin their regular summer hiatus. They resume 8 September. Sung Compline is at 7:00 pm tonight. Compline is also on hiatus until 4 September.
- 11 June (Saturday)—Vestry Retreat and June meeting. The vestry will not meet in July but will meet in August.
- 12 June—The paper version of Parish Notes switches to a monthly publication for June, July, and August. The electronic version of the Parish Notes (enews) shifts to every two weeks and will be focused on our summer outreach program, “No Ordinary Time.” Weekly publication of both versions of Parish Notes resumes in September.
- 12 June—The weekly bulletin shifts to a reusable summer bulletin. The weekly liturgy will be printed and available as usual without the portions of the liturgy that change every week—hymns and readings. The hymns and readings will be printed weekly on a single insert sheet. Hymn numbers will be posted on the hymn boards and will also be announced by the presider. Book of Common Prayer page numbers will also be announced for people who would like to use the Book of Common Prayer instead of the reusable bulletin. The summer bulletin, weekly readings, and hymn books will continue to be available online. Full weekly liturgy bulletins will resume publication on 8 September. We are freeing time for our Parish Administrator, David Bliss, to both have a vacation and to focus on other parish projects that are in need of some dedicated time and attention.
- 27 June–11 July COVID respite time—During these two weeks, we anticipate all non-essential parish activities will be paused. The parish office will be closed during regular office hours. Evening staff will open the building for facility user groups.
- 3 and 10 July COVID respite time—The Sunday service will be a spoken Morning Prayer service led by the Rev. Tammy Hobbs Miracky. All other summer services will be Holy Eucharist.
- 4 September—Monthly choral Compline resumes on the first Sunday of the month.
- 11 September—Welcome Back and Parish Picnic. All activities resume.
At All Saints, we strive to nurture a culture that knows rest is a vital component in enacting God’s mission. We do so by generally maintaining a scaled-down approach to church activities in the summer, including fewer meetings, reduced publications, no choir, no church school. This year, we are going several steps further to ensure that we can all embrace the wisdom and grace of rest that is integral to sustaining the vitality of our community. We hope everyone will find the renewed strength and confidence that God promises through holy rest.
O God of peace, you have taught us that in returning and rest we shall be saved, in quietness and confidence shall be our strength: By the might of your Spirit lift us, we pray you, to your presence, where we may be still and know that you are God; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen (The Book of Common Prayer, page 832).
For the full text of the bishops’ message, see https://www.diomass.org/news/diocesan- news/bishops-and-standing-committee-call-covid-respite-church-employees.