Covid-19 Update on 7/7/2020
Dear Church Family, we want to do our best to handle these difficult times with wisdom.
We must and will do our best to follow any LEGAL orders our government puts in place as long as they are not in conflict with God’s laws and standards.
The Situation: As we moved into the green phase, our hope was to move toward more normalcy in our Sunday meeting schedule. Our plan to restart services at the PGCC building was well within the legal parameters of the Governor’s “Emergency In-person Operations Order” (issued April 15) which limited public gatherings. This order states that “Churches, synagogues, temples, mosques and other places of congregate worship are specifically excluded from the limitations established by this Order.”
Then, on July 1st, the governor issued his “Universal Face Covering Order” which expands the impact of his previous statements, but in no way changes the exemption status of religious gatherings.
Since the previous exemption still legally stands, we continued with our plan to meet at the PGCC building on July 5th.
Most recently, (this week) a newly released government Q&A seems to contradict the previous orders/exemptions.
Question: ”Do I have to wear a mask at a house of worship such as a church, synagogue or mosque?
Answer: “Yes, individuals must wear a face-covering in any public place as well as outdoors when they are in a place where people are congregating and they cannot remain 6 feet apart from persons who are not a part of their household.”
…To put it plainly: if there isn’t a lot of space, no matter where you are we want you to wear a mask.
What do we do?
While we find these mixed messages to be legally questionable, contradictory and confusing, we still want to act honorably as representatives of the King of kings.
PGCC is in a uniquely positive position since we have access to such an amazing outdoor space at Circle K where we can continue to meet regularly with the ability to easily maintain social distance. this allows us the luxury of not having to make masks mandatory and also accommodate any/all who wish to remain distanced.
The Plan For PGCC:
Back to Circle K we go!
- 9am coffee
- 9:30 am service
- Stay spread out
- park carefully and responsibly… its the wild west up there