From the Rector
Dear Friends in Christ,
Through the pandemic we have sought to balance the health of members, the wider community’s safety, and the need for Christians to pray, sing, and worship together. With these concerns in mind, the Vestry has had a couple rounds of discussion about how to approach Christmas Eve.
From 2016-2019, December 24 attendance has fluctuated between 1,250-1,700. (We have discovered that rain seems to depress attendance zeal.) We have no idea how many people to expect this year.
Every person and family is making similar decisions about how to balance risk with the need to be in church with friends and family. Every family’s risk tolerance is different, as is the health situation of each.
Each person’s need for connection, community, and the peace they find here in these challenging times is also something that is part of the health and wholeness of each. The longing to receive, as one saint calls it, the “medicine of our souls” in Communion is another deep need.
Balancing all these needs, longings, and hopes with the still looming stresses of the pandemic has not been easy. I am deeply thankful to the Vestry for taking this work seriously—and for doing it in a way that has modeled Christian charity even amidst occasional disagreements.
I am also thankful to our health cabinet, and especially to our Parish Nurse, Carol Jones. Both have shown willingness to share their counsel throughout the pandemic as they have sought to keep each member of this community as healthy as possible.
Thank you, as well, to those who took the time to take the recent survey. It was immensely helpful in identifying things for which there was strong support (like masking) and things for which support was less enthusiastic (like adding morning services). Your feedback helped guide our final decisions and I am grateful for that.
Christmas Eve Protocols
The Vestry arrived at a unanimous decision regarding Christmas Eve protocols earlier this week:
Each service will be capped at just under 2/3 of our seating capacity. This will bring our attendance cap to 250 (which is up from the 150 we have been using). However, it should be noted, that we have only had three services since the beginning of August in which we have bumped up against that 150 number. This will allow for people to be spaced, though we will use each pew and it will not allow 3 feet between each party if 250 people attend.
Masking will be required for all services. This was an important finding in our survey and we will—for now—continue to require masks at large gatherings like Christmas Eve.
We will live-stream the 3:00pm, 7:00pm, and 9:00pm services. Each service has its own character and people will find, across them, a variety of music, formality, and family participation.
We will offer overflow seating at 7:00pm and 9:00pm. According to survey results, it is these two services that the highest number of people are interested in attending. So, we will offer a decorated and lovely space in our gallery to handle overflow if we exceed the attendance cap at those services. At 9:00pm, a Communion minister will administer the sacrament there, as well. (The 7:00pm service will be Lessons and Carols without Communion).
Conclusion
The way to keep yourself safest in these times is first and foremost to get the vaccine. Each and every person and family will need to decide, as this pandemic continues, what kind of risks they are willing and able to take. We can’t do that calculation for you, but we will seek to balance the desire of so many to be together with the health risks that still exist (especially for those who are not vaccinated).
If you cannot be vaccinated or have someone in your family who is immune-compromised, please contact Carol Jones at parishnurse@stphilipstucson.org. We are looking at making specific accommodations for folks with some severe or heightened needs.
In the week or two ahead, more details will follow about Christmas Eve’s logistics. But right now the Vestry and I want everyone to have as much information as we have to share.
No decision is a perfect one. I am sure there will be folks who wish we would have fewer restrictions. I am also sure there will be people who want more. I am certain of this because I see my emails every morning!
With that said, I am also confident that each and every person is as energized as they are about this topic because they love Saint Philip’s. They long to be back, they want everyone to stay safe, they want us to be able to gather safely, and they want to do it as soon as we can—so many folks love this church in so many different ways.
I am grateful that we will be together on Christmas Eve. I hope that as we gather in person or online that we do so thankful for the story that brings us together, the love that sustains our days, and the hope that crowns our life together.
Yours in Christ,
—Fr Robert