Our church buildings may be closed but the church is very much alive and serving our communities but in different ways: - we continue to live stream services from home, we continue to pray and worship and love one another.For the time being our church buildings are closed for public worship and for private prayer’, without exception. Weddings:There can be no weddings in church buildings until further noticeBaptisms:There can be no baptisms in church buildings until further notice. Emergency baptisms can take place in hospital or at home, though subject to strict hygienic precautions and physical distancing as far as possible.Funerals:Funerals can only happen at the Crematorium or at the graveside. Only immediate family members can attend (if the crematorium allows) – that is, spouse or partner, parents and children, keeping their distance in the prescribed way.Live streaming of services (or pre-recorded messages) will still take place, but from home. Check out The Church of England in Ollerton and Boughton’s facebook page or Rev Zoe Burton’s facebook page.Check out Rev Zoe Burton's facebook page or our church facebook pages: The Church of England in Ollerton and Boughton and St Andrews Eakring for prayers and helpful resources and news during these times.What can happen churchwise is being updated regularly so do check out the Church of England website for all the latest updates.
Covid-19 UpdateWith the continued updates regarding the coronavirus outbreak, we wanted to keep you updated with the action we are taking across our 12 churches to limit its effects. This is an ever-changing situation and the leadership team are closely monitoring new guidance from the Church of England and Public Health England. Following this advice, at present, the decision has been taken that essential services will continue, (although this could change), with the following adjustments:- Holy Communion will be given in one kind only. The use of the common cup has been suspended. - Physical contact should be avoided, which means we cannot shake hands during the sharing of The Peace. We can however be really creative with sign language!- The collection plate should not be passed person to person.- To reduce the risk of infection we will not be serving refreshments, so you may wish to bring a bottle of water with you. - Please take notice of government advice should you be suffering from a new continuous cough or temperature and self-isolate to prevent passing infection to our most vulnerable people. - Please use hand gels provided and wash hands regularly.Finally, we ask you to join us in prayer for our leadership team, for our communities and for all those facing difficult decisions and for those who are affected by the coronavirus. We pray for our nation and for our world.
