Churches take varying approaches to health guidelines

Faith Lutheran Church will hold its services Sunday while taking extra health precautions.

The Riverside County Health Department’s guidelines regarding safety during the coronavirus outbreak has posed a challenge for local churches, where large numbers of people normally congregate each Sunday.

While pastors recognize the need to reinforce the faith of their church members in such a trying time, they also realize the responsibility they have to keep those in their congregations safe and healthy. The health department has ordered that there be no gatherings of more than 250 people, and that smaller gatherings should take extra precautions and manage a “social distance” of six feet between individuals.

Churches in Menifee are approaching this in different ways, with some cancelling Sunday services, others switching to virtual church online, and others meeting in person with special precautions.

“It’s a fine line we’ve been struggling with,” said Pastor Tony Truax of Hope Christian Church. “How do you stay in line with government guidelines and still tend your flock? Some are jumping to the ‘right to assemble’ argument, while others say no, we have to be responsible and restrict contact.”

Some churches in Menifee meet in schools, which have been ordered closed for all gatherings by the health department. That makes the decision easier for congregations that now must cancel services or make other arrangements. Truax’s congregation meets at Ethan A. Chase Middle School, but he said Romoland School District officials have given him permission to hold one brief ceremony this Sunday to pray with church members and announce a temporary conversion to online church communication.

“We don’t have anywhere near 250 people, but we recognize the need for safety,” Truax said about Sunday’s 9:30 a.m. service. “It will be a low exposure service. We will not bring out our normal sound equipment, there will be no Sunday School classes. Everyone will meet in the multipurpose room, where we will first wipe down all the chairs and spread people out in a larger circle than normal.

“I will announce that after this service, we will be going online and they can check our website for the message.”

Faith Lutheran Church in the Sun City community has mostly seniors in its congregation, which averages about 100 attendance per Sunday, said Pastor John Barton. Most of the seniors are already self-isolating, he said. There will be a service at the church building this Sunday, but there will be significant changes to stress hygiene.

“I think we have enough space to do that,” Barton said about seating people six feet apart. “Those who still wanted to come to worship, we have urged them to prepare to maintain what they are calling social distance. We will limit both contact between persons and with objects.”

Barton said that rather than having servers pass the offering plate, it would be placed in front for people to drop their donations in. Then the plate will be handled by members wearing gloves. For communion, servers will hand individual communion items to church members rather than passing the tray as usual. And the church’s tradition of “passing the peace” will be modified, instructing members to bow or wave to each other rather than shaking hands or hugging.

“A lot of churches in our denomination have gone to virtual church,” Barton said. “Given the average age of our congregation, many of our members may not know how to live stream or may not even have a computer.”

Barton said his congregation also has a strong culture of communication through phone chains. Regular checks will be made upon seniors to see if they need assistance or help with food.

Impact Church, which meets in an industrial park in New Hub Circle, will limit Sunday church attendance to 200 and may expand to offer additional services, said Lesa Sobek, Menifee City Council member who interacts with many pastors as a member of the Menifee Interfaith Council.

A public announcement by the staff of Sandals Church included the following message:

“We will be hosting all of our services online starting this weekend and ask everyone to please watch with us from home, where you can participate in worship, hear a timely message from Pastor Matt Brown, as well as pray and give with us.”

Online services will be streamed live several times throughout the day.

The View Church is a large congregation that meets in the Sun City community. On its Facebook page, Pastor Gregory Perkins said that church services would be held as usual, with information given on how those who wish may watch the live feed from home.

“Based on current information and official guidance, there is no need to cancel any of our church activities,” Perkins wrote in the Facebook statement. “However, we will refrain from asking congregants to shake hands or hug their neighbor. Instead, we will simply say hello to our neighbors, similar to what we did last week. We will aggressively monitor the situation as it develops, and we will take the measures necessary to protect your well-being.”

Revival Christian Fellowship, one of the largest churches in Menifee, will continue to hold services at its large facility on Scott Road.

“We will continue to hold services as usual, while at the same time taking every precaution we can to keep the congregation safe,” Pastor John Miller announced on the church website. “If you prefer, you can stay home and watch online.”

As reported previously, all congregations of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints have cancelled Sunday services. Church members will continue to minister to each other in every way possible without gathering in large numbers.

“Though all of our church activities and meetings have been cancelled temporarily, we will continue to reach out to those who are in need of assistance,” said Menifee Stake President Michael Gray. “This happens not only in our congregations but in our communities. At this time, it is even more critical that we keep this desire in our hearts and be mindful of those around us. We hope and pray that at this time of uncertainty, we come to understand that we don't fear and panic and all will be well."