“And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.” Luke 2:7
Could it be that virtual worship has added extra room to the inn?
That’s one of the things the Rev. Kerrick Nevels has been noticing during the coronavirus pandemic.
He says the two churches he pastors, Strangers’ Home Missionary Baptist Church and Brooklyn Chapel Missionary Baptist Church, have become better connected and with that have made space for each other because of the pandemic.
The churches, like the Episcopal Church of the Nativity and North Greenwood Baptist Church, are not holding in-person services this Christmas. Instead, the churches are using the internet as a tool for worshipping together. That’s widened the opportunities for some of the congregations.
“We have members who are, for instance, truck drivers,” Nevels said, explaining that they often are not able to attend in-person services because of the demands of their jobs. “Because of COVID, we have been able to connect with members who normally would not be able to come, and it’s a blessing.”
“It shows how God has been able to take all things and work them together for good.”
Members of the congregations have been participating in weekly prayer through conference calls. Nevels’ son, Kerrick Jr., who is 10, on Tuesday night read the story about the birth of Jesus during Bible study on an internet platform. On Christmas Eve, the pastor’s wife, Tina Nevels, will read Christmas stories to children and others who want to listen at 6 p.m. on Facebook. Then at 9 a.m. Friday, the churches will also have a virtual service of celebration, also on Facebook.
Both Nativity and North Greenwood Baptist are hoping worshippers will let the light of Christmas shine in their homes using the Internet. Nativity’s Christmas Eve service will start at 5 p.m. on Facebook and on www.nativitygreenwood.org. Church members will read from the Bible, and the choir will sing Christmas favorites, concluding the service with “Joy to the World.”
“After a brief sermon, the choir will start ‘Silent Night,’ and I will light a candle and sing along. To connect us all at that point of this most holy night, I invite you to light your own candle, sing with us and celebrate the ‘holy infant, so tender and mild,’” the church’s interim rector, the Rev. Carrie Duncan, wrote in a letter to parishioners.
Also, Duncan has enjoyed learning to use the video editing software iMovie, so she made a Christmas video for the church.
The video will premiere right after the service on the website and Facebook with people speaking and children singing. “I have a dozen people who have sent me recordings of just their voices or clips,” she said during an interview.
For example, the children of Harris and Lindsay Powers — Charlie, 12; James, 11; Libby, 9; and Chip, 6 — will appear as they sing “Away in a Manger.”
“It’s sweet, and I think people will appreciate it,” Duncan said.“It’s fun for me, and it’s my gift to put these little gifts together and share a little love and light.”
The Rev. Dr. Jim Phillips said North Greenwood Baptist’s congregation will be taking communion and lighting electric candles from their homes while watching a service live on Facebook or on the church’s app at 5 p.m. Christmas Eve.
The candles and communion packets were available for church members to pick up outside the church’s office door, and more than 300 electric candles were distributed along with packets with communion cups and wafers.
The service will feature violin duets by Aria Bozant, a member, and her sister, who will be visiting from Minnesota. Two babies will be dedicated, and the service will conclude with worship leaders and worshippers at home standing and singing “Silent Night” with lighted candles.
At 6:15 p.m., the church is inviting members of the community to join the North Greenwood Baptist family for “Carols on the Boulevard” outside the sanctuary on Grand Boulevard. Everyone will be singing, and the boulevard will be blocked between Monroe and Cleveland avenues for a short period during the gathering.
“Bring your candle with you,” Phillips said. “What a unique time to slip away from your home for 15 to 20 minutes.”
Nevels sees the services as opportunities to give encouragement.
“It is a difficult time for everyone. We don’t minimize the pain,” he said. But, “God is still working, even in these times. This is when we see God work the most. Even in times like these, it can draw us closer to God, and we don’t want to miss that.”
•Contact Susan Montgomery at smontgomery@gwcommonwealth.com.
