St. Lawrence Episcopal Church - 125 West Church St., Libertyville, Illinois 60048 - 847.362.2110
Hybrid worship goes indoors Sundays at 9:00AM
Beginning Sunday, June 20 we return to the Sanctuary, under the St. Lawrence Phase 2 reopening plan, for public Sunday worship. The indoor service will simultaneously be streamed to Zoom from a designated parishioner’s phone. Please expect a simple 9 AM eucharist service, much like we’ve already been doing this summer. In many ways, it will be like the Outdoors worship, just taken inside. CLICK HERE TO JOIN ON-LINE
Does this mean everything is back to the way it used to be? Well, no. Because our worship services are open to the public, we will still adhere to COVID-19 safety precautions. Some of our parishioners, particularly children under 12, are not yet eligible for vaccinations. And for the general public who may wish to worship with us, we will not be asking for proof of vaccination. Our main goals remain the same: to include everyone, and to keep all of God’s people safe.
What covid-19 restrictions will be in place? Much like what is now required for schools, daycares, healthcare settings, and public transportation, our Phase 2 plan will still include mask-wearing. Our diocese puts limits on singing for unvaccinated people, and for now we will be distributing communion hosts only (regular or gluten-free). You may read our complete Phase 2 plan by CLICKING HERE.
Under Phase 1 for St. Lawrence, only the glass door on Church Street was authorized for entry. What about Phase 2? All doors are now authorized for entry, including the one that is near the elevator. All restrooms will be accessible as well. In order to protect the unvaccinated Montessori children, we ask that worship attendees stay out of the lower level of the building.
What happens when the service finishes, for those in person? Keep in mind that we are not ready for taking off our masks to eat treats and drink coffee, nor to socialize indoors. When the Eucharist ends, you might continue fellowship with others by heading outdoors! Fully vaccinated people may choose to go somewhere to socialize/eat together after church. Many may choose to depart without socializing. Perhaps in a few weeks, we’ll be able to organize some socializing/eating as a congregation.
What about children? Of course, children are welcome to church. Everyone over the age of 2 must wear a face covering. We are preparing to open the Nursery in a few weeks with a fully vaccinated staff. In the weeks before the Nursery opens, children may either stay with their caregivers or come forward to use the Soft Space at the front of the church.
What if I’m not ready to be in person? You will not be alone in that. There will be a Zoom option. You will simply log on to Zoom at 9:00 AM as you have been doing for many months. For those who zoom in, you’ll be attending synchronously with what is happening in person. While the in-person people are receiving communion, those on Zoom will offer together the prayer for Spiritual Communion. At the end of the service, all those who have attended church on Zoom will have time to talk with one another. If you are interested in having someone bring you communion (bread only) after church, please contact Betsy Swank.
When will two services come back? Rite I? We’re not there yet! Cleaning protocols between services are still in place, and our Reopening Task Force is currently exploring the steps required for multiple groups of the “public” using the same space in the same morning. For the staff and volunteers who make these services happen, keeping it simple at first will help us do this well.
What is happening with the office? Is it open? What about the organizations that use our building? The main organization that uses our building is the Village Green Montessori School, serving children who are not yet eligible to be vaccinated. We maintain for now the complete separation of their operations from everything else, for the children’s safety. The entire lower level of our building is being used by VGM so that they can implement the social distancing still required of them. Hope Food Pantry, our other major organization, plans to continue for the next months the same pattern they have been using for the past many months. Meanwhile, one of the 12-step groups who uses our building has agreed to be a pilot group for us during this time period under Phase 2. We will be learning from their experience in order to bring the other outside groups back in. Regarding the church office, we are taking advantage of the summertime to regroup about how and whether the church office will return to its old way of operating. Stay tuned for more about that this fall.
Online Prayer Group
This online group receives a list of prayer requests every Tuesday morning to pray whatever way you pray.
Prayers may be sent throughout the week. Prayers are shared as they are written.
To be added to the list, ask a question, or add a prayer request, email prayergroup@stlawrencechurch.org.
St. Lawrence Together
Here at St. Lawrence our operations have been reduced to the bare minimum. Our wonderful administrative and finance team is working almost entirely remotely. We are worshiping together, receiving mail, including pledge payments, and paying all vendors.
The HOPE food pantry continues to operate, under revised procedures, to serve our neighbors in need.
You can call the church office at 847-362-2110 or send an email to office@stlawrencechurch.org.
Online Resources
