With very little fanfare, the following changes came into effect for churches as of July 12th:
NEW UPDATES TO GREEN ZONE RESTRICTIONS (starting July 12, 2021)
Wedding Ceremony: 250 people registered at the door and seated throughout the service
Reception: Inside – 25 people, Outside- 50 people Distancing has changed to ONE metre from TWO metres for people from different residences. Masks required.
Worship: Distance of ONE metre between people from different residences if people remain silent or whisper. Distance of TWO metres when people from different residences sing or talk (masks required.)
Now obviously, our particular church couldn’t accommodate 250 even in non-Covid times! So it’s important that we keep safety as our priority and guiding principle. That is why two baptisms in August will not take place during worship but separately. Still, it’s nice to be able to relax the 25-person limit. We will continue to keep an attendance register at the door, but there’s no need to reserve in advance. If we should have 26 or 27 people for worship, we will make sure health measures are followed, and we will rejoice in their presence!
I don’t know if you noticed, but it seems to me that this is the first time since March 2020 that any kind of congregational singing has been officially sanctioned! Even if we’re still distanced, even if we’re still masked, in August we shall Lift Every Voice and Sing!!!
