Present Situation
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
As I am sure that you are all fully aware, It is with sadness that I write to inform you that because of this COVID-19 pandemic our church doors for the moment will be temporarily closed and our Sunday, Lenten and Easter services cancelled. For some weeks now with the spread of COVID-19 in our country we had it on our radar that stronger restrictions on gatherings may come into effect. Thankfully we were able to meet for service on Sunday 22nd of March before the new measures were announced. At that service we asked for feedback as to how we should continue. At that stage the government had only restricted us to 1.5m between individuals, and 4sqm per person in a building. The overwhelming response from the congregation on that day was that we should while abiding by such rules continue with services and even offer communion if it could be done safely. Church council met after this meeting and taking into account that expression of desire, came to the decision that this would have been the right move. We had a plan to stay safe, but to still offer services of word and sacrament at Bethesda! However, on that same night, the Prime-Minister made an announcement that lead to us having to put those off for the time. Following on from Sunday night when places of worship were instructed to shut down, there has been further instruction from the government to prevent smaller gatherings in homes.
The Bishop of the LCA, John Henderson has written a letter to the church regarding these things (See here for the full letter https://www.lca.org.au/lca-covid-19-response/). In it he says:
Government directives are quite clear on this matter. We must close our physical church buildings and worship centres for the duration. Australia has a Christian, church-going Prime Minister, and he would not ask us to do this lightly. This means no Sunday morning, Lenten, or other church services, small group bible studies or prayer times in our buildings or in the church grounds.
And yes, sadly, this means no Holy Communion for the time being. The bishops ask you not to trial any experimental practices in your congregation. Communion is not magic. It is the community meal of the church, instituted by the Lord of the church, not a private spiritual act. Returning to the altar for the bread and the wine, once this is all over, will be a sweet and special moment, a special celebration of God’s redeeming grace. While it is central to the regular life of the church, in times of duress our faith and salvation do not utterly depend on receiving Communion. God has many ways of feeding us with his word and the water of eternal life – let’s explore them and make use of them.
We will continue to hold Services of the Word in whatever way we can, using whatever means God has made available to us. When St Paul wrote to the churches from his Roman prison cell, he had the Spirit, a message, some parchment, ink, and a quill. Praise God, we still have the Spirit and that message, the gospel of salvation, and we also have the internet, phones, printed materials, and (still) a physical postage system for those not yet adapted to the digital era. If Paul could do it in the 1st century, we can do it in the 21st!
Bishop John has also instructed us to keep up to date with the latest government instructions which can be found https://www.health.gov.au/.
Worship continues!
So! Despite the fact that we cannot continue to meet in our church building, or in people’s homes for the minute we can continue to worship our Lord and grow in our faith in our own homes as we wait this out. And we plan to support you in doing so through this period by continuing to provide the word, prayer, teaching and fellowship. This will be through email, telephone and your mailbox depending on your preference and what you have access to. At the beginning of this period I intend to send each family, either through email or the mail a short service order that you can use at home with your spouse, or children. Father’s and husbands, I encourage you to lead the way in the use of such tools. It will be a short prayer orientated responsive order. It would be ideal particularly for use on Sundays in lieu of our normal service. In addition, weekly and ongoing I will send out my sermon, prayer points, communications, midweek bible readings, a midweek devotion – or other interesting reading material. I will endeavour also to keep in regular phone contact with you, as will our pastoral carers. Though I encourage each of you to phone one another regularly during this time. Obviously with any new thing that one does, there are teething issues. If you do not receive correspondence from our church, please don’t hesitate to call either the church office, or myself on 04…. If you hear of someone else being left out of the loop, please don’t hesitate to let us know as well, or if you meet or speak to someone else, someone new to our community who would appreciate our correspondence, speak up so that they can be added. Online Sunday services from the LCA will also be available to watch during this time should you wish https://www.lutheranmedia.org.au/our-ministries/worship-life/.
Mission continues!
Although we have been asked not to gather together at this time. It is never the less still a time of mission and purpose for us as the people of God. During this time there will be many who will be experiencing great suffering, whether through fear and anxiety, or through financial loss or possibly at worst even physical pain. We each get to be the hands and feet of God as we minister to them offering encouragement, prayer and hope. And for those who don’t know Christ, who may have questions of a spiritual nature at this time we have great answers from the word of God and the gospel message to give. I encourage you to think about how you would share what you believe about God with someone if they should ask. Or how you could direct them to where your hope is if asked how you are coping with these events.
Help is at hand
I recognize this is a difficult time for many, especially as many workplaces close their doors, and pay is cut and so on. If you are suffering distress during this period and need someone to talk to about it, or someone to pray with, please don’t hesitate to contact either myself or one of the pastoral carers. Or if you are in need in any other way or for any other reason, we would love to help where and how we can!
Finally, I pray that God would guard each of you from the evil one at this time, guide each of you by the Holy spirit, and give each of you a real sense of mission for the present and hope for the future. Amen.
· If you are able to continue supporting our church community at this difficult time, envelopes can still be received through our church locked mailbox at 81 city Rd Beenleigh, alternatively online giving through our bank account can be utilized. Name: Bethesda Lutheran Church Beenleigh, Bank: Westpac, Account: 162497 BSB: 034-605
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