Local churches offer ways to worship on Easter Sunday He is Risen
As always, Easter services remain a source of renewal and hope. Last season, although emboldened by the joys of Easter — a raging COVID-19 pandemic caused many services to be canceled. While some houses of worship opened, clergy and the faithful struggled with the growing impact of the coronavirus.
“Virtual attendance” via computer or smart device was born and those who could not gather together as one still found a connection in the Word. Ritual social distancing and cleaning protocols became part of the religious experience.
This year tells a different story.
With a year's worth of experience and the promise of vaccinations for all in the near future, Easter will be celebrated in Butler County churches in a variety of pandemic-safe ways, including drive-in Easter services and online celebrations.
The Rev. Peter de Vries, pastor of Old Union Presbyterian Church, 200 Union Church Road, Mars, said Easter this year will be a lot different from last year.
“A year ago, my wife and I were doing services in our house and livestreaming them,” de Vries said. “It felt a little weird.”
This year, he said Old Union plans to have two Easter services, one at 7:30 a.m. and one at 10:30 a.m.
“Basically, we are going to ask people to sign up for one of the services,” he said. “The way, we can get as many as possible in, factoring in walk-ins.”
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