Dear Friends,
I am so impressed by the many ways you have been the Church over the last week. Thank you for the creative and profound ways the Gospel was preached and the love of our Lord celebrated. Seeing the many ways we lifted up our hearts was a beautiful and glorious blessing, thank you. I remain bolstered by the words of the Apostle Paul who said, “nothing can separate us from the love of God.”
Much has changed and shifted since my last communication with you concerning the coronavirus. COVID-19 cases in our state have risen to at least 80 and we’ve had the first COVID-19 related fatality in Mississippi. Statewide, the Governor closed public schools until at least April 17. Public and private schools, colleges, universities and seminaries are shifting to distance and online learning in order to finish out the spring semester. Sewanee has canceled its May graduation ceremonies for undergraduates and seminarians.
Social distancing is the new normal. In an effort to “flatten the curve,” local, state and federal leaders have suspended public gatherings, including worship of more than 10 persons, and required restaurants and other businesses to close or limit service. In Jackson, those limitations specifically apply to worship services.
Last week, Presiding Bishop Curry sent a message saying, “The next 30-60 days at the least are simply going to be unlike anything we have experienced in recent history, even including 9/11. The dilemma of what we know and what we don’t know will continue to complicate our decision making and our lives.” To that end, I, along with my staff and the leadership of the Diocese, have been monitoring these and many other developments over the last week, including information coming from the CDC, the Mississippi Department of Health and other organizations. I continue to be in touch with several of my fellow bishops, and our Canons are participating in calls and Zoom meetings to discuss the ramifications of this public health emergency on the church.
A week ago, after much deliberation and prayer, I made the decision that all face to face, in-person services of public worship in our Mississippi churches would be suspended through Sunday, March 22. I made that decision in an effort to protect and promote our health and to slow the spread of the pandemic in our corner of God’s kingdom. In light of the need to continue efforts to protect everyone, especially the most vulnerable, I am extending the suspension of face to face, in-person public worship through and including Easter Sunday, April 12. This suspension also extends to all in-person gatherings and meetings of vestries, mission committees, as well as diocesan and local church groups, committees, commissions and the like. I will continue to monitor news throughout the day and will be in consultation with Diocesan leadership about when adjustments to this suspension might safely be made. I will communicate such adjustments immediately.
In addition to this suspension, the following guidelines will govern our common life as communities of faith.
- For the foreseeable future, funerals should be simple graveside services limited to a gathering of no more than 10 people. A requiem Eucharist may be celebrated at a later date.
- Weddings may be held but are also limited to gatherings of 10 or fewer persons.
- AA and similar 12 step recovery groups can continue to meet on church property. I would recommend that such groups limit their gatherings to no more than 10 persons in any given room of the church. I also suggest that you be in touch with the secretaries of these groups which meet in your churches to share the limitation on meeting size, and to work with them to make multiple meeting spaces available, if needed. It is appropriate to ask these groups to sanitize all hard surfaces following each meeting to promote health and safety.
- Feeding ministries may continue to provide assistance and support to those in your communities who are vulnerable; however, meals and food must be offered via “curb-side pickup” only. I also request that volunteers, whether members of your church or persons from the broader community, over 60 years of age not be allowed to participate in these programs, and that you ensure that volunteers take adequate precautions to protect themselves from infection while so serving.
- Staying connected during this time of social distancing is vitally important to who we are as a church. I have encouraged priests, deacons and church leaders in the Diocese to continue to reach out to church members who may be in need. I have encouraged our clergy to connect with members via phone calls, text messages, Face Time, etc. and to recognize that face to face visits in homes and hospitals may heighten the risks of infection. Be smart. Always ask for permission before making an in-person visit.
- Facing our current reality, and in an effort to model and normalize social distancing, beginning today the Allin House staff will work from home. They will continue to be available to answer your questions, and provide guidance and resources. Please look for communications from Canon Ponder on how to contact staff members. I along with Canons Ponder and Stephens will continue to offer Noonday Prayers Monday through Friday via Facebook Live on our respective Facebook pages. Please join us!
- Almost all groups that had made reservations at Gray Center during the next six weeks or so have canceled those reservations. In consultation with me, the decision has been made to temporarily close both campuses of the Camp and Conference Center to all traffic and visitors. Please respect the closure by staying away from Gray Center! I encourage you to reach out to the Gray Center staff if you have questions about deposits, reservations or the like. Presently, summer camp sessions have not been suspended or canceled. We’ll keep you informed as other decisions affecting Gray Center are made.
Worship is central to who we are as Christians who practice our faith in the Episcopal tradition. It breaks my heart to extend this suspension and add these guidelines but it gives me peace in the hope that we are doing a small part in stopping the spread of this virus.
I join Presiding Bishop Curry in encouraging you to explore and experiment with online worship. Several faith communities across the Diocese, and beyond, are already providing virtual Morning, Noonday and Evening Prayers and Compline. Others have broadcast services of Holy Eucharist. Still others are sharing Prayers for Spiritual Communion. We are pulling together liturgical resources that may help you in planning for the remainder of Lent, Holy Week and Easter. Those will be shared as soon as possible.
Other resources are being gathered and shared as they become available, including resources on stewardship, Christian Education for children and youth, human resource management and the like. Please let us know what resources or other support I or my staff can provide.
In an effort to create intentional pastoral care groupings, and to otherwise provide support to and for one another, I have established a series of “Affinity Groups” across the Diocese. These are clusters of parishes, missions and chaplaincies which are in geographic proximity to one another. The purpose of these groups to ensure that clergy are cared for during this time, and that coverage in the case of illness, etc. is available. For your convenience, I am attaching the Affinity Group listing. Please take the initiative to reach out to others in your group.
In the last ten days or so, the Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Mississippi creatively, positively, and prayerfully responded to this public health crisis. I have seen worship and expressions of faith offered from every corner of our church, for instance, young people gathering online for compline while others prayed the Daily Office; and families watching on-line celebrations of the Holy Eucharist while saying together the Prayers for Spiritual communion. I encourage our churches to continue these moments of public prayer! The Diocesan office will continue to offer information and resources for your use.
Now is the time for all of us to pick up the phone and call each other! It is time for all of us to offer our prayers for the wellbeing of our people and communities. It is time for us to follow the instructions of our civic, state and national leaders and do our part in minimizing the spread of the virus.
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Peace be with you,
+B R Seage
