The View Newsletter

The View - Vol. 12, No. 12, December 2020

The View - Vol. 12, No. 11, November 2020

The View - Vol. 12, No. 10, October 2020

The View - Vol. 12, No. 9, September 2020

Welcome to Pleasant View
Evangelical Lutheran Church

Inviting… Nurturing… Growing… Serving…

Good News is Inviting

Start to think about that friend of new neighbor who might not have a church. Invite them to come with you. God may have already opened a door in their life; now they only need someone to make a connection.

Suspension of in-person worship at Pleasant View Lutheran Church

As you are very much aware we are a small congregation. Usually there are less then 50 people attending our Sunday worship services. Even so, Rosemary Spell tested positive for COVID a few months ago and more recently Larry Landes also tested positive. Fortunately Larry’s symptoms have been very mild. His wife, Joy, was also exposed but tested negative and has self-quarantined. In addition a number of other members of our church have been exposed to the COVID virus in the past few months. They have all done the right thing by self-quarantined until the threat of transmission passed. As a church we are doing our best to prevent our members from being exposed to the virus. I want to be clear that none of these exposures have happened in the church. Nevertheless my point is… that as small as our church is... several members have been adversely affected by the virus.

This past Friday (Nov. 13th) our governor, noting the increase in Coronavirus cases in every region of Virginia, issued a statement restricting social gatherings to no more then 25 persons. Five hours later he amended his statement to exempt churches provided they adhere to all other guidelines.

Then yesterday (Saturday, Nov. 14th) the bishop of the Virginia Synod, Bishop Bob Humphrey, issued his guidance strongly recommending that all Lutheran Churches under his jurisdiction immediately stop in-person worship and other in-person church related gatherings.

In response to these directives, I and the church council, have decided that it is in the best interest of our congregation not to have in-person worship during the next two weeks while I am on vacation (i.e. the Sunday of Nov. 22 and 29). During those two weeks we will determine if it is safe to resume in-person worship and if so what, if any, further restrictions are necessary.

The sole reason for this decision is for the protection of your physical health. Personally I whole-heartedly agree with our bishop’s recommendation. From a scientific perspective there is every indication that with the upcoming holidays this virus is going to get much worse before it gets better. Suspending in-person worship for a limited time is one small way we can contribute to minimizing the spread of the virus at this time.

I think it is only right that I point out to you that I am an interim pastor here. That means that I have been called by the Virginia Synod to serve you until you as a congregation issue a call to a candidate and he/she agrees to be your pastor. For this reason the bishops recommendation carries additional weight for me.

The church is not closing, we are here to meet your spiritual needs. It is only in-person worship that is being temporarily suspended. During these next two week and any time thereafter we will continue to email or mail the Sunday bulletin, announcements, newsletters, etc. just as we had during the Spring and Summer when in-person worship was suspended.

We are all tired of this pandemic but we must do whatever is necessary to inhibit its spread. I thank you for your patience, your understanding, and your prayers. I am confident that with God’s help we will get past this stressful and uncertain time.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Corinthians 13:14)

Pastor Larry