St John's will remain open for services of public worship during the new lockdown announced by the Prime Minister across the whole of England. Places of worship have been told that under the latest restrictions they can continue to hold communal services.
- Our weekly Parish Communion service will continue each Sunday morning at 9:30am.
- Funeral services can take place but we are only allowed to have up to 30 mourners.
- Wedding services can only take place in exceptional circumstances with up to six people attending.
The health and well-being of everyone in church is our most important concern and we must do everything we can to stop the virus being passed around our congregation and anybody who is visiting St John’s. It is important that anyone attending church wears a face covering, uses the hand sanitiser and maintains physical distancing from anyone outside their own household or support bubble.
These new restrictions also mean that some people who have particular health concerns have been told to resume shielding at home. There will be other people who may choose not to come to church because of their own personal concerns. We will continue recording weekly services which you watch at home and we pray that these will be a real blessing to anyone who cannot come to church in person. You will find them in the Recorded Services section of the website as well as on our YouTube channel and our Facebook page.
It is unsettling for all of us to have to deal with further restrictions at a time when we are starting a new year and hoping for better times. The fact we are still able to meet in church is a comfort we have this time which was not available to us last year. We all hope that it helps bring us the strength we need to cope with this new lockdown.
May God bless you and keep you safe.