COVID-19 Update for Local Churches

posted on February 25

Dear Friends,

Please find below a brief update from our Bishop and Cabinet regarding in-person worship services and other important matters for our life together.

We hope you will find this helpful, and please know we are with you as our journey continues. Thankful for your resilience and faithfulness! You inspire us every day!

Peace and Health,
Bev

Covid-19 Update for Local Churches (12-22-2020)
(Link to PDF of most recent WNCC Guidelines dated 11-11-2020)

Yesterday, Governor Cooper issued an easing of Covid-19 restrictions. The Bishop and Cabinet remain committed to our biblical mandate to “love our neighbors as ourselves” and our Wesleyan call to “Do no harm. Do all the good we can. Follow the ordinances (stay in love) with God.”

We celebrate that percentages of positive test results and hospitalizations continue to show improvement while vaccine distribution increases. However, we are also aware that people across our conference are losing loved ones each day. Thus, we continue to recommend that all local churches and other ministries follow the guidance of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as they make decisions about indoor worship, small groups, and other gatherings.

Using Governor Cooper’s Executive Order No. 195 as a guide, the Bishop and Cabinet make these specific recommendations:

For those churches whose counties are not in the “red,” indoor worship may be considered using a limit of 30% capacity or 250 persons, which ever is less. When determining the number who can safely gather in the sanctuary or worship space, social distancing should be maintained, and masks must be worn. The recommendation for no full-choir or congregational singing remains in effect.
A 25-person limit should be maintained for all other gathering inside the church building. Please continue to socially distance and wear masks at these events as well.

As we continue to journey through the season of Lent, may we be mindful of the over 500,000 persons in the United States who have lost their lives during this pandemic and may we keep all of those who mourn their loss in prayer.

FAQ for Executive Order No. 195

NCDHHS COVID-19 County Alert System Bulletin (2-22-2021)