A word from the pastor…
Grace and peace, friends!
I’m not sure how many of you can remember back to March, when stay at home directives were first issued, but the first mention was for an initial 2-week period. Of course, much was learned in those weeks, and now it has stretched into 4 months and counting. Even before in-person worship was suspended, we were making plans to amend our worship practices, including the celebration of Holy Communion.
While most parts of worship can be done online, Eucharist is one that simply doesn’t work. After all, we do not celebrate a Lord who came to us virtually, but in the flesh, and our meal is not only a remembrance of his sacrifice for us, but also a celebration of the oneness we share in Christ. Initially, it made sense for us to fast from this celebration, but as the necessity of practicing distancing stretches out for what may be months to come, there is a hunger deep inside of us to feed our souls with this meal that reminds us both of the One who gave of himself for us and which reminds us who we are.
Therefore, we will begin offering short services of Holy Communion beginning Sunday, August 9th. The services will be limited to 10 people or fewer and will be held in the Community Life Center at the following times:
- Sundays at 11am
- Mondays at 10am
- Wednesdays at 10am
- Wednesdays at 6:30pm
Since we need to limit these services to small groups, please call the office at 458-5310 to sign up, or send an email to office@stpaulscb.org or pastor@stpaulscb.org to sign up.
In addition, I am willing to come to your home (preferably outdoors) to celebrate with your family, friends, and neighbors in groups of 10 or fewer. To schedule a time, please call me at 910-512-2547 or email pastor@stpaulscb.org. We will need to follow guidelines for gathering, including masks and hand sanitizer, but I am hopeful that we can once again to connect at the Lord’s Table and feast on his grace.
Blessings,
