(Facebook/Our Lady of Consolation Roman Catholic Church)

By Aaron Schulze

Easter Weekend During COVID-19

Digital and drive-ins: northeast churches adjust Easter services during pandemic

Apr 9, 2020 | 6:00 PM

With Saskatchewan still under a State of Emergency, meaning gatherings of 10 or more are prohibited to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, churches in the northeast region have altered practices.

Easter weekend in 2020 will be no different.

Still wanting to bring people together to celebrate Easter Sunday, Nipawin Apostolic Church will conduct its service in a unique fashion: via drive-in.

“We’ve been having our services online for quite a while before this pandemic… it’s great to still be able to connect that way, but it’s just not the same as being in the same space as somebody else,” Pastor Jordan Gadsby told northeastNOW. “We’ve done outdoor events, but it’s always been with people out in a park or community square type space. We’ve never done a drive-in with people in their vehicles.”

Just like how families would park their cars to watch a movie, Gadsby said the church staff will have parking lot directors at each entrance of Centennial Arena’s parking lot and ensure they’re two metres apart. On Sunday, April 12 at 10:30 a.m., residents are encouraged to turn their radio dials to 99.3 FM to pick up the live service.

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“We’re asking everyone to stay in their vehicles. If there’s space… we’re a little bit closer in celebrating an important day like Easter Sunday together.”

For other churches such as Our Lady of Consolation Roman Catholic Church in Melfort, services altogether will be reduced compared to previous years.

Father Travis Myrheim said he typically hosts 12 services over a four-day stretch: three each for Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil, and Easter Sunday. Now, he only intends on conducting one service for each of the days as many of the Christians who attend his services live in rural areas without internet.

Myrheim has also resorted to streaming his Sunday services online.

“I’m just using my phone to stream… our churches are not designed for audio and visual right now,” Myrheim said. “We still rely on the old school ‘show up for church and hope the microphones work.’ It’s interesting because at least half the people watching my live streams are not [regulars]. I tailor what I say to the people I know. I’ve been journeying with them for the last three years. I know who they are and what they need to hear.”

Myrheim said Easter Sunday during the COVID-19 pandemic won’t be the first unique Sunday service he’s faced, although he’s still finding ways to get the message out to his people. He said the public reception to his online service has been positive so far.

Both services in Melfort and Nipawin will streamed online at the Our Lady of Consolation Roman Catholic Church and Nipawin Apostolic Church Facebook pages.

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aaron.schulze@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @SchulzePANow