Pandemic Religion: A Digital Archive

Pandemic Religion Contributions

Item Set

Items

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  Virtual Worship Service

  April 19th was our seventh Sunday of not gathering together in person for worship. Each week, we've tried to provide a simulacrum of a worship service through Facebook and YouTube. This week, I (as pastor) took my sermon out into nature. Pastoral ministry these days is surreal, bizarre, and exhausting, but we continue trying to foster spiritual health and growth within our congregation.
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  Moving Communion Online: What would Calvin say?

  Months before the COVID-19 virus spread, forcing us to move our worship services online, our congregation made the decision to schedule communion for March 29th, the week before Palm Sunday. As we planned worship for that week, we struggled with whether / how to celebrate communion online. There were practical questions as well as theological questions to address. Our Constitution (Part II. Book of Order) is clear that communion is to be celebrated in the gathered congregation, or at least immediately following worship as part of a pastoral call to members who cannot be present in the worship service itself. As Christians in the Reformed Tradition, we ultimate found that our theology of the sacrament of communion (informed by our theological forebear, the 16th century reformer John Calvin) and what we understand to happen in communion, made it feasible for us to proceed to celebrate communion online. The experience was remarkable. We found that the spiritual connection to the Communion of Saints (as Calvin described those of every time and place who call on Christ's name) was palpable, and a gift for us all, especially at a time when we were not permitted to connect with Christ and one another in the same physical space.
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  Church @ Home

  We didn't realize it at the time, but apparently a few of us at St. Peter's Lutheran were preparing to do church during a pandemic. During the last few years we have shifted to a giving resource called Tithe.ly that allows for easy digital online give. We also began streaming one of our church services. Both of these resources were sort of utilized by the congregation, but now they are being heavily utilized. We began a service called Church @ Home, where church and lay leaders contribute to the service from their homes. Every Sunday morning one of our rooms turns into a recording studio with lights, microphone, web camera, and projection streaming software. We've been doing a mixture of live and pre-recorded video and audio. We've been supplementing these streams with zoom small group gatherings. We are 7 Sundays in and I feel a longing from my congregation to be incarnational...to somehow see each other in person. People are putting on a brave face, but the longing is creeping up in different ways. We are an affluent congregation, and so the number one question I hear is, "What can I do? How can I help?" We are creating a relief fund based on donations to help people in financial need. The fund will first help church members, but I foresee it being used for the greater community. As we are trying to tend to the present, the leadership is attempting to look into the future and imagine how life at church can be...given that it needs to be different from before.

• COVID-19 changed me

  I'm an international student that was suppose to graduate this may, I study in the United stated after Covid 19 started spreading, my state had low cases everything was online one day I woke up receiving an from my sponsors asking me to book my flight back home since its better there so I did, as I reached my country the checked our temperature and all , then sent us to a hotel that was guarded by the military themselves we didn't leave our rooms for 15 days, had no contact with anyone even the people in the hotel. The first few days went well but then it was sad and depressing being back home not seeing your family or connecting anyone in person , i used my time wisely, i started to create a schedule of the activities i would like to do , such as watch my lectures , solve my homework, work out , i became more connected to god , i did my prayers on time, I started drawing again and thinking of my future and what will i do once everything is over , after the 15 days i came home i learned how to cook , our maid went back to her country so i started helping my family in cleaning the house, cooking , going to buy the grocery washing them then putting them in the fridge , i washed the clothed and hanged them in the sun , i was used to a certain life style and i felt corona helped me change my personality, I became more independent, more organized , more spiritual more caring and understanding

• Pandemic Religious Experience

  This whole pandemic has been very interesting, to say the least. One are of my life that has been greatly affected by this pandemic is the religious aspect of my life. It has changed from going to church 1-2 times a week and doing a bible study with friends 2 times a week to spending virtual time with God on Sunday mornings. My church is doing their best to make our services as interesting and normal as possible during this unique circumstance but it is still vastly different. I never knew how important the atmosphere that my church provides was until now. I miss the community and sense of safety that it provided and I cannot wait until we are able to return to how things were before.

• virtual meditation

  Instead of meeting with friends for zazen or mindful meditations, they have all been moved online through Zoom. One nationwide for zazen: https://zenleader.global/virtual-zazen/?mc_cid=2af74c531b&mc_eid=1eb7ddaedc and one through Ozarks Dharma Community: https://www.ozarksdharma.org/2020/04/thursday-open-sit-meditation-now-online.html

• Religion during a pandemic

  My Church services and small groups have gone completely virtual. We mostly have been using zoom or FaceTime to connect with one another. Every Sunday, the sermon is posted on Facebook as well as Youtube. Its personally strengthened my religious beliefs as I believe God is using this time to connect and draw His people closer to Him. I only have Him to depend on as an unchanging source.
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  Our Holy Communion Table

  Here’s how we prepare our Holy Communion Table.  
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  First Presbyterian Church West Plains

  My story and a link to our churches sermons is in the pandemic file.
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  Communion during a Pandemic

  During the shutdowns associated with the coronavirus, Catholics have been prevented from gathering for mass for many weeks. Although many people watch services online, there is no easy or sanitary way to receive holy communion. This photo, accompanying article in AMERICA magazine, shows a priest in New Mexico distributing the eucharist to people in cars. Although this practice is not common, it is a creative solution to a serious challenge in religious practice.

• Aunt with COVID-19

  During this Pandemic, my aunt has unfortunately caught the coronavirus. She lives in Brooklyn, New York and has been hospitalized. She is 78 so her age hasn’t really helped with anything at all. My family has been going through a tough time especially my mother since this is her oldest sister. My mom has formed a conference call for our family and other family members to get on a call at 3 in the afternoon, everyday, to take the time to pray for her sister, as well as to pray for other people and things during this pandemic.

• Prayer Space

  In my house we have a sacred space where we go to pray and devote our time to God. During this Pandemic we have spent more time in this space doing bible readings, praying, and just coming together as a family. It’s how we try to find peace throughout all of this and still stay connected with God.

• St. Edward’s Roman Catholic new normal

  We now attend mass via Youtube viewing of live Mass celebrated by our Pastor. Our Holy Week and Easter Sunday celebration was an empty church except for the priest, the cantor and a couple others to carry out the Mass. While listening to Easter music, eyes closed, it was if I was in church seeing our congregation like every other Easter I celebrated for the last 55 years. Open my eyes, I was in my pajamas in my family room looking at Mass on my iphone. Unimaginable! Somehow my spirit was connected to a higher being and felt grateful for my faith. Our diocese is ringing bells at area churches giving thanks to the doctors and nurses and all frontline workers.
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  Y'hi Ratzon -- Safe Together Apart

  I am Cantor at a Conservative synagogue (Jewish) in Columbus, Ohio. I wrote this song/prayer shortly after the arrival of what was first called Coronavirus, then Covid-19 -- before the word pandemic was being commonly used. The song/prayer had coalesced by March 20. It is based on a somewhat obscure passage in the weekday Torah service (the Torah is read every Monday and Thursday) -- a passage theoretically recited between raising the Torah and returning it to the Ark. The original prayer asks God (our Father) to protect us from desolation and pestilence. I broadened it -- both in Hebrew and in English -- to think of God as both Father and Mother -- and to ask for protection for all of us (not just "b'nei Yisrael" -- the children of Israel) -- brothers and sisters in this country and around the world -- and to keep us Safe Together Apart -- which is the unique challenge to us in these times. I typically do either the Hebrew or the English (generally not both) between various services -- or in the midst of some services -- probably about 5x per week. As we still follow our basic traditional rituals, it hasn't altered the prayers that we do. . . it just gets added here and there. And I share it with other cantors, other Jewish spiritual leaders, and leaders of other faiths, at all appropriate opportunities.
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  Holy Thursday Agape Meal

  Church service was held on zoom webinar where we blessed our food (I had saltine crackers and wine) to have a form of communion together. Traditionally in church we would have a washing of the feet to commemorate Holy Thursday but we washed our own hands in this case
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  “Never let a good crisis go to waste”: Buddhist reflections on the Coronavirus pandemic

  An offering to the community from Sean Feit Oakes, this piece was written early on in the US experience of COVID-19, but it still contains relevant information for how to spiritually process the virus through the lens of a Buddhist practitioner. I tried to share it from Medium, but I got an error message, so I tried sharing his website front page, as the document is accessible via a hyperlink on that page. That didn't work either. Here is the link: https://medium.com/@seanfeitoakes/never-let-a-good-crisis-go-to-waste-buddhist-reflections-on-the-coronavirus-pandemic-f775f348e781

• Pandemic Ramadan

  The Muslim month of fasting is usually a time of more than usual communal get togethers. Not only are Muslims more inclined to perform prayers at their mosques, but in Sunni Muslim tradition, the month involves supererogatory prayers at night throughout the month. On one particular night during the month, when it is believed by both Sunni and Shi’a Muslims that the Quran first began to be revealed, all night vigils and prayers are offered. The special ritual obligations of the month are complemented by special social obligations. The breaking of the fast at the end of each day is occasion to invite family, neighbors, friends, strangers to the table to share in a meal of thanksgiving. As well, it is considered commendable to feed the poor and offer extra charity to those in need during the month. Traditionally this is done personally, to those in the community or neighborhood. Both spiritual and social obligations of the month will be tremendously impacted by the pandemic, in Muslim majority societies and here in the USA. Below is one Muslim community’s response to the challenge.
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  Preaching to an empty room

  Our church usually sends a video feed of the worship service into other rooms so that people who cannot easily sit in the sanctuary can still see and hear the preaching. The technology we use to make this possible has been pressed into service for broadcasting a live-streamed service to members' homes. Our pastors are having to learn how to speak to a camera at the back of an empty room. The goal is to seem as "normal" as possible, but the usual attentive faces are no longer present and their feedback cannot sustain the preacher's energy.
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  Our Lady Star of the Sea Church, photograph by Edward Lea

  Our Lady Star of the Sea Church in Atlantic City, New Jersey, photograph of Jesus wearing protective mask. Edward Lea is staff photographer for The Press of Atlantic City.
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  Minyan in Brooklyn, Photograph by Jacob Kornbluh

  Orthodox Jewish minyan, March 17, 2020
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  Prayer in the time of Coronavirus by the Chaplain of the House of Representatives

  A Prayer during the Coronavirus Pandemic for the United States House of Representatives Community, by Fr. Patrick J. Conroy, S.J., Chaplain.
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  Godly Play via Zoom

  For several years the idea of offering Godly Play – a method of spiritual formation grounded in research on children’s spirituality and play – in a virtual setting has been floated, primarily as a means of training leaders/mentors in remote or rural areas who don’t have easy access to in-person training. I admit, I was a skeptic from the start, even as one among a group of trainers who explored the topic – especially as such a key element of Godly Play is the relational, community component. Then came COVID-19, with virtual gatherings being the only way to connect, and I have, so to speak, taken the plunge. At last count, I’ve offered 12 Godly Play sessions via Zoom in just the past several weeks. It’s been a steep learning curve, and each time I’ve discovered something new about the mechanics of it … but I’ve also made some discoveries. What I’ve seen is that, while this new way of gathering for Godly Play is not the same, it can be nurturing and spirit-filled. We’ve had, in most sessions, a mix of intergenerational experiences that wouldn’t have otherwise happened. We’ve gathered as a community – “building our circle,” experiencing a story presentation, wondering about the story together, sharing in prayers, and offering blessings and goodbyes. During the “wondering time,” thoughtful responses have been given and received by all age groups, ranging from preschoolers to those in their eighties—and, rather than what often happens when children are put on a pedestal or laughed at or just otherwise seen as “cute,” there’s been a level of respect among the generations and the sense that all are on equal footing. One wondering this past week (which I share with his permission) came from a fourth grader who, because of his significant challenges to express himself in the usual ways, uses a letter board to communicate — "I'm pretty sad about Jesus," he said [in reference to his dying on the cross], and "I'm not sure how I fit in." The stories we share, and the opportunity to make meaning through wondering as a community, offer us the chance to wrestle with the existential issues we all face, including our need to belong. This child named that longing, for all of us I believe, especially at a time when we cannot physically be together. Thoughtful wondering among adults and children continued – both out loud and in the “chat,” and was interspersed with periods of silence. I’ve found that in these online sessions we've had participants show up — both adults and kids — who have never, or rarely, given Godly Play a try in person, including some of our parents who are for the first time getting a peek into what it’s like being “in the room where it happens” (even though we’ve often offered such opportunities in person). In part, that may just be a matter of how easy it is to join the session — you can decide right at the last minute — but whatever the reason, participation of newcomers has been noticeable. The child I mentioned above has never been able to participate in person in the way he was able to online – perhaps this online experience will be a bridge to his involvement in the flesh, or maybe this will just be a different way for him to participate going forward. In either case, I’m seeing this as a way to provide access to those who, for whatever reason, are not able to show up in person. Looking toward the future – which is hard to do more than an hour or two at a time right now – while none of us knows how this pandemic and physical distancing will end, I don’t imagine it will, nor should it, all end in a big splash with everyone overnight being ready to gather in crowds. One of the questions we are considering as staff and leadership of our church is, “What practices/ways will we discover in this time that we want to hold on to?” – a corollary, I think to the Godly Play prompt, “I wonder what we can leave out and still have all we need …” I am wondering whether we will want to continue to offer these online/live sessions – not instead of but as an alternative – even when we begin to go “back to normal,” whatever and whenever that will be. Images include the story “Exile and Return” and the Screen Share we offered in closing of the “Faces of Easter” Lenten series. Note: Godly Play materials and images are copyrighted. The Godly Play Foundation has been supportive of efforts to share virtually and has offered guidelines for doing so on its website: https://www.godlyplayfoundation.org
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  Home Communion Table for Zoom Worship

  Palm Sunday, April 5, 2020
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  Zoom LifeGroup

  Each week we look forward to having our LifeGroup in our home to discuss the sermon from Sunday. With the pandemic we couldn’t meet in person because our group was larger than 10 and we just didn’t think it was safe. So we have had a Zoom meeting each week. At first we wondered how it would go since it seems so impersonal. Well it has been full of deep times of conversations about our God and what is happening. It has been a time where we are so much more open and willing share about or struggles and needs. It has been a time of deep meaningful prayer for each other and the world. Though we can’t wait to meet in person again we are so thankful for technology and the ability to come before God as a group. One neat thing our church also did after each sermon was live-streamed was have a Zoom Lobby huddle where people could see each other and say hi since we all aren’t in the same same Life Group. I included pictures of the Life Group and Zoom Lobby fellowship.
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  Virginia pastor who held service dies of coronavirus

  Bishop Gerald O. Glenn of Richmond, Virginia's New Deliverance Evangelistic Church held church services despite a government ban on large gatherings.