A new 'structure of praise, prayer': Houses of worship make plans for reopening

The Ontario government has given the go-ahead to churches, temples, mosques and synagogues to open their doors again Friday,but with the exception of the Thunder Bay Masjid it will likely be several weeks before most houses of worship in the city are ready to welcome the faithful.

"We have a lot of work to do in order to reopen, and that has begun butit needs to continue to be sure that when we have worship the people who come are safe and worship is meaningful in a new way," said Matthew Diegel, the pastor at Our Saviour's Lutheran Church in the northwestern Ontario city.

Government regulations state the buildings can only operate at 30 per cent capacity, so Diegel and leaders at other churches are measuring and marking the two-metre spacing in pews and on chairs, and are closingareas where people will not be allowed to go. As well, clergy are advised to preach from a distance of more than six feet from people, since they will be doing the majority of speaking.

Churches are also assigning screeners to meet people coming inside, to ask about potential symptoms and to remind them of physical distancing protocols. The use of masks and hand sanitizer is also being recommended.

As much as churches will look different, they will also sound different, said Diegel, explaining that health officials are discouraging singing, communion and call-and-response prayers, readings and devotionals"because that's also been proven to increase the rate of droplet and virus transmission in other localities."

'Nostalgia, fear, excitement' as worship moves forward

"It will be very silent, compared to normal," he said. "The structure of praise, prayer and thanksgiving will be remarkably different from what we usually do."

Diegel said he is now working with his church counciland colleagues to create a new type of worship service, just asthey did when the lockdown was announced.

"There's a new excitement and energy to keep some of those things we've started to do in the last 10 weeks, not just pivot back to the way it was in March, but to look ahead. That's both exciting and challenging, but it's a nice thing to be part of. So we go into the future with some people saying nostalgia, others have said fear and while others say excitement and I think it's a mixture of all of those."

Diegel hopes to open the church sometime this summer and is considering the possibility of outdoor services. He noted that funerals and weddings are limited to 10 people.

Register for prayers at mosque

The Thunder Bay Masjid is offering three prayer sessions on June 12, but only 60 people are allowed at each one and they must register first.

Saalem Church is preparing to welcome parishioners on June 21, while the Roman Catholic Dioecese of Thunder Bay is aiming for the last weekend of June.

Anglican churches in the city are not planning any indoor services until September.

Most other houses of worship, including Redwood Park Church and the United churches are continuing to stream services until their reopening plans are complete.