St John's is Re-Opening for Worship
Added: 22 August 2020
With the easing of restrictions on Places of Worship, the Kirk Session of St John's has resolved, with our Minister's agreement, to re-open St John's for worship as from Sunday, 6 September 2020 at 11:00 am. Much work has been carried out to put measures in place to ensure that the re-opening is done safely and in accordance with the rules set out by the Scottish Government.
Because the size of congregation that may attend is drastically reduced from pre-Covid-19 numbers, a booking system has been developed by which members of the congregation can reserve seats for themselves and other members of their household. To book space, members will be required to phone a dedicated number during the week before the Sunday upon which they intend to attend worship. Places will be allocated as far as is possible while conforming to the rules regarding social distancing.
Click here for further information about how to reserve seats.
The format of the service will be different to what members have been used to. There will be no hymn singing or praying out loud; prayers and readings may be pre-recorded; an offering will not be uplifted during the service,(but there will be an opportunity to make a donation on leaving); the service will be shorter than we are used to, perhaps about 30 minutes; access to toilet facilities will be for emergencies only. upon arrival, worshipers will be required to give their names and contact details and sanitise their hands. When in the sanctuary, they must wear a face covering (unless medically excused), remain in the pew allocated and avoid interaction with others.
Other Ways to Participate in Worship at St John's
Throughout lock-down, a short, weekly mini-service has been available on-line. Past mini-services are available here.
Members and Friends of the congregation who are unable to attend worship in person will be able to participate through the on-line version of the service which will be broadly similar to the "live" version in church. One significant difference is that there will be hymns in the on-line version. These will be taken from the archive of past services, which stretch back to 2015.
for those without an internet connection, a CD version will be distributed in time for recipients to participate alongside those in church and on-line.
The Offering
During lockdown, when the church has been closed to the congregation, it has been difficult for members to make their regular, weekly offering via WFO envelopes. Donating can be done remotely. See Donating to St John's On-line. By contacting the church, we can arrange for FWO envelopes to be uplifted from a member's home.