Last week, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) provided further guidance regarding masking, physical distancing for indoor and outdoor gatherings. The CDC’s latest guidelines state that fully vaccinated persons can safely participate in large gatherings (outdoors and indoors) without a mask or face covering. The guidance also states that those not yet vaccinated should continue to wear a mask and practice appropriate physical distance. This is welcomed news and indicative of a positive trend in our collective efforts to curb the spread of this deadly virus. We ask each member of St. Peter Lutheran Church to continue to do their part to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 as we are able.
So, what does this mean for us at St. Peter?
- Those who are fully vaccinated and comfortable doing so are invited to participate in worship and other church events with or without masks.
- For those not yet fully vaccinated masks will continue to be strongly encouraged. Of course, there is no way to know if someone has been vaccinated or not. We will rely on the honor system as we continue to navigate our way through this process.
- Those with underlying health concerns or compromised immunity are encouraged to continue wearing a mask, along with those who feel most comfortable wearing a mask.
- We are not called to police behavior, but we are called to walk in love towards one another. In that spirit, we ask all members and worshipping guests alike, to walk in love and compassion towards one another.
- We still have people within our community who are vulnerable.
- We still have people within our community who are immune compromised.
- Our actions and behaviors continue to be guided by a simple metric:
love of God and love of others.
- Your Vicar will continue to wear a mask in most public settings when both vaccinated and unvaccinated people are gathered.
- We will continue to offer – and improve upon! – our livestream worship options for those who are not yet comfortable or able to return to in-person worship. We know that this “re-entry” process will look and feel different for everyone, so SPLC is committed to offering a variety of ways to participate and engage in worship together.
