Dear Members and Friends of IBCZ,
I am happy to report the following updates to our Sunday Worship. As I’m sure you know, the Swiss Government has relaxed some of the restrictions related to gatherings, including public worship.
First, we are no longer limited to just 50 people in attendance. We are now allowed to have up to 100 people, in addition to those serving (worship leaders, tech team, ushers and greeters, speaker). This means that pretty much everyone who wants to gather for worship on Sunday morning will be able to.
Registration is still required for contact tracing purposes, and also to make sure we do not surpass our 100-person limit. You can continue to do that by clicking the link on our website as well as in the newsletter.
For June, we will still meet only every other week, meaning we will gather for in-person worship June 6 and 20. Worship on June 13 and 27 will be online only.
In July, we will be open for in-person worship every Sunday! I know we have all been eagerly awaiting this. (We will continue to live stream the services for those who cannot attend.)
Our regular Sunday School program will not resume until the end of August. We usually take a break for a few weeks in July/August anyway as many people are on vacation, so we will wait until then to launch our Children’s Ministries. Starting in July, children from around the age eight and below can go downstairs for a more informal time. Christian DVDs, crafts, and toys will be available.
Face masks are still required, and we must social distance as best we can. We will not be serving refreshments, but we encourage you to visit with your fellow worshipers after the services if you are able. What a joy that we can begin to reconnect with each other!
Now that we will soon be returning to our normal worship schedule, we can use more volunteers to help with music, tech, ushering and greeting, and Sunday School. Regarding Sunday School, you may volunteer either for the more informal July/August program which does not require any preparation, the regular Sunday School starting in late August, or both. Please contact Catherine Leonhartsberger at feurboeck@yahoo.de. to volunteer for either Sunday School program.
Let’s all be in prayer as we come back together, that we will be led and empowered by God’s Spirit for a new chapter in our ministry.
(Next week I will continue the article series Becoming a Christlike Person by mentioning two more reasons it is crucial for us to be growing in the qualities of Christ-likeness.)
Grace and peace,
Pastor Bob