Sisters and brothers in Christ,

Since suspending in-person worship in March, First Lutheran has continued to worship twice a week, provide pastoral care, serve the community, teach our kids and so much more. Our staff and membership have boldly accepted the challenge to be God’s Church even when we can’t gather in a church building. Thank you for continuing to engage in the ministries, participate in worship and gift the church with your financial generosity. It continues to make a difference!

On Tuesday, May 5, the Vision & Leadership Team met soon after our pastors met (via Zoom) with pastors of the whole synod and Bishop Arends. Both meetings addressed the ‘when’ and ‘how’ of re-opening our building. This is not a simple question!  

Christian worship, as Bishop Arends said, “is a great petrie dish for germs,” which requires us to ask a lot of questions: Singing projects droplets that are highly effective at spreading germs. Do we not sing? It would be impossible to practice social distancing with 2-year-olds in the nursery. Is the nursery closed? What traffic patterns would need to be established so people aren’t crossing paths? How would we enforce limits on the number of people in bathrooms? How would we enforce the wearing of masks? Offering two services on a Sunday morning would require the entire building to be disinfected between services. Do we worship only once? And how would a congregation full of masked worshippers commune? We really shouldn’t pass the peace, the offering plate or share fellowship in the narthex. And do we have enough space to keep everyone six feet apart? Would we have to limit the number of worshippers that can enter? How would we do that? And, would we even want to? And … what if an outbreak gets traced back to First Lutheran, a fellowship with many vulnerable members? How would that feel?

The Vision & Leadership Team is committed to the safety of those who enter our building. We have read the Badger Bounce Back Plan and a resource offered by the Wisconsin Council of Churches called, “A Model for Returning to Church.” These resources, along with recommendations from county, state and federal government agencies are guiding our response.  

In our May 5 meeting, each Team member shared their perspective on re-opening the building. Responses included, “we shouldn’t gather for worship until all of us can gather safely. We say our favorite thing about our church is that “All Are Welcome” after all.” That sentiment was shared by almost the entire group. Which begs the question, what if safely gathering (for ALL) isn’t possible for a long time? Would our church survive? Here’s where we are at: every single one of us on the Vision & Leadership Team wants to gather for in-person worship, Sunday School, weddings, funerals and everything else we do together, immediately. We miss being church together over food, with friends! But, the reality of what in-person worship would be like at this stage in the pandemic feels extremely unsafe to a church our size. We do not see a way to safely gather for in-person worship on Sundays and Wednesdays anytime soon. But please know the Vision & Leadership Team will re-evaluate our response each month.  

In the meantime … every member is strongly encouraged to engage in the growing amount of online and virtual content being produced by our staff and leadership. Our pastors offer a “Morning Musing” by 8 a.m. six days a week. Kathryn Pedretti offers daily prayer at 4:10 each afternoon. (First Lutheran is at 410 Main St … get it?) Worship will be live-streamed Wednesdays at 6:15 and Sundays at 9:15am. And coming soon … a daily Bible study led by Pastor Stanton, a weekly “Practicing Faith” conversation with Pastor Karyn, a book study on “Sanctuary,” a weekly “Bible Bits” devotional offered by members of the church and more. Access all this content on Facebook, Youtube or through our website.

If you do not have WiFi or a device to access this content, please call the church office. First Lutheran’s Foundation has provided a grant to the church for the purpose of installing WiFi in homes and purchasing devices so that ALL feel truly welcome to participate in church while staying at home. Maybe you just need assistance in connecting a device? We have a team for that, too.  

Our Neighbor-to-Neighbor program launched in April and is a priceless way to remain connected and informed. Get to know your connector (the person who calls you) and share prayer concerns. Our connectors will be the glue that holds us together through our distance.

In-person worship and in-person ministry is preferred to virtual and online church work. But, for the sake of our physical health, we can continue to grow in faith even while separated. Our FaithAlive! Church is showing that ‘church’ isn’t the building. It’s the people! Thank you again for all the ways you continue to follow Jesus as a member of First Lutheran Church.  

In Christ,

Larry Schreiner, Jennifer Wiesjahn, Brandon King, Derrick Knight, Diane Shuda, Michelle Renkas, Nancy Beguin, Pastor Jason Stanton, Pastor Karyn Bodenschatz