How do you celebrate Easter during the pandemic? Here is what the faithful are doing
Denrick E. Rolle, rector at Overtown’s Historic St. Agnes Episcopal Church, knows how much loss his congregants have endured during the COVID pandemic.
He lived it himself.
When his father passed away last year in the Bahamas, Rolle, a native Bahamian, couldn’t say goodbye. He couldn’t travel the short distance to grieve with his family, the way he and so many families would otherwise do.
But he took solace in knowing his church, which dates to 1923, spread faith to a community that needs it, made sure no family went hungry, and kept worshipers as safe as possible. And he guarantees it will be no different for Easter Sunday, in which St. Agnes will hold its largest in-person service since last year, in celebration of the holiest day of the year for Christians.
“It’s doable,” Rolle said confidently, as he and a handful of masked volunteers distributed palms at a drive-by Palm Sunday event last week. His church, which hosts about 200 regular parishioners, is using a “hybrid” online and in-person model for this year’s Easter service.
Across South Florida, churches are adapting to pandemic protocols, ushering in Easter services with masks, socially distanced pews, and in the case of the Episcopal Diocese’s Trinity Cathedral, instituting reservation systems to limit the number of people who can attend Easter Sunday services. Others, like Community Bible Baptist Church in Miami, will still have communion, but parishioners must stay in their cars to receive it.
Rising vaccination rates in South Florida have led to shades of optimism, especially compared with last year, when many churches were shuttered on Easter Sunday as the pandemic had just taken off.
“This is where our tables are starting to turn and you’re starting to see that degree of hope,” said Raquel Smith, a community liaison for Community Bible Baptist Church, near Jackson South. “We still at heart want to keep our members safe, so that we can still congregate but still do it safely.”
Community Baptist was one of Jackson Health’s vaccination partners. Smith said that while many of the congregants were skeptical of the vaccine at first, people’s perspective changed when they learned their pastor received a COVID-19 vaccine. So far, the church has helped vaccinate about 600 people, inside and outside their congregation.
“It was a beautiful thing that we saw happening,” said Smith.
Finding spaces for the Easter crowds
To help curb infections, churches are using additional chapels, parking lots and all the overflow rooms they can find to accommodate the expected crowds in person. Some are requiring attendants to fill out a short questionnaire guaranteeing they have not had any recent symptoms of COVID-19.
While St. Agnes returned to in-person worship for Christmas in a limited capacity, Rolle estimates that close to 80% of his congregation has already received at least one dose of the vaccines. Masks and social distancing are still required.
“We’re going to use the hybrid as an opportunity to work our way through and see how it works. If we can organize 40, we can organize 60. And if we can organize 60, perhaps we can organize 80,” he said.
For the thousands of members in Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church — one of the largest Evangelical congregations in South Florida — the Easter celebration feels particularly relevant, said Andrew Nichols, the church’s executive director.
Similar to Easter symbolizing the resurrection of Jesus Christ, Coral Ridge has experienced a renewal of its own over the past 12 months
“This year really helped us find a new identity almost,” he said. “We reevaluated how we did ministry and how we effectively reached people.”
A new, livestreamed audience
The Fort Lauderdale church began broadcasting its hour-long service in 1978. The program aired in 165 countries and attracted nearly 3 million believers, Nichols said. But then it phased out in 2007 after the church’s founding pastor died.
When the church shuttered in March 2020 because of the pandemic, the administrative staff returned to its roots and stepped up its livestreaming service. The result: the Sunday morning viewership rose from about 200 to more than 2,000, a phenomenon that churches experienced across the country. On special occasions like Christmas, the audience could reach nearly 17,000.
People from across the country started joining, including members of smaller churches that didn’t have the capacity to hold their own streamed services.
“We were doing one camera on Sunday morning. Now we’re doing a five-camera shoot,” Nichols said. “It’s been really cool. We have gained a whole new audience of people.”
Coral Ridge, which celebrated its 60th anniversary last week, reopened in June, following Broward County’s safety guidelines like social distancing and masks. For the Holy Week services, it held a Maundy Thursday communion service in the evening, a Good Friday service at noon, and has plans for three Easter services on Sunday, which parishioners have to pre-register on the church’s website.
“As much as the pandemic was terrible — continues to be terrible,” Nichols said, “this year was a really pivotal year, almost a stake in the ground, if you will, for our church.”
Bringing back the sacraments
The shutdown also forced a lot of churches to cancel traditional sacraments associated with the Christian faith, like baptisms, First Communion and confirmation.
At Saint Michael the Archangel Catholic Church on West Flagler Street, parochial administrator Father Elvis Gonzalez said they are using Easter weekend as an opportunity for 20 young worshipers who had to skip out on the ceremonies last year to receive their sacraments. The event is scheduled for Saturday night.
“It’s pretty special because people are starting to return,” said Gonzalez, who leads the Spanish-language Mass for a mostly Hispanic congregation.
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On Easter Sunday, the church will host about 350, even though the main sanctuary can hold up to 1,200 people. An additional 150 people will be seated in the chapel and all others will watch the service from the parking lot, which Gonzalez said is about eight acres in size.
The services were completely online last year, but Gonzalez said the church tried to still make it special for the parishioners. They helped them over the phone set up their computers so they could watch the services, sent letters and blessed palms on Palm Sunday.
“The palms had already been ordered and everything,” Gonzalez recalled. “The first months of the pandemic, we worked really hard because it was all about reinvention.”
“Now, there’s a church before the pandemic and after the pandemic,” he added.
It’s a similar story of change at other churches, which have had to trade egg hunts and choirs for livestreamed traditions.
Little Haiti’s Notre Dame d’Haiti’s Good Friday procession, which usually involved an outside gathering and re-enactment, has moved indoors.
The Saturday Easter Vigil Mass will be celebrated virtually. On Easter Sunday, parishioners can attend any of the three Masses, at 7 a.m., 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., with the main Mass at 10 a.m.
The main sanctuary will have two people per pew, which usually fits 12, or sit a whole family or group. There will be overflow areas in the chapel and parish hall.
For those who can’t make it to church, all Easter weekend Masses will be live streamed on the church’s Facebook and website at www.notredamedhaiti.org.
Services in the sunshine
At Miami Shores Presbyterian, congregants can attend one of three morning services: a sunrise service at 6:45 a.m., a morning service at 8:45 a.m. and a late morning service at 11 a.m.
Services will be outside and all must wear a mask and be socially distanced. The church is encouraging people to bring their own chairs and blankets. No more than 150 people will be allowed to attend.
The outdoor services will be reservation only and a spot can be saved online at mspc.net or by calling 305-754-9541.
Pastor Debra Maconaughey, rector at St. Columba Episcopal Church in Marathon, says her church’s case is “particular.”
The main sanctuary has been completely gutted since Hurricane Irma destroyed the church in 2017. To accommodate their parishioners, many of whom are seasonal visitors from around the country, the church built an outdoor pavilion.
“We’ve definitely gotten our money’s worth this year,” said Maconaughey. “We bought beach umbrellas to kind of have fun with it. We’ve had some services in our garden... We always have that good vibe down here.”
Because many of the congregants generally return back home — or did not show up at all through the pandemic — one thing the new virtual reality has given Maconaughey is the opportunity to stay in touch with her congregants despite the distance. She regularly sends letters and small gifts to show her appreciation.
For Easter, they’re planning to have their usual close-knit gathering outdoors.
“I think everyone is feeling relieved,” she added. “If you think of where we were last year and where we are…It definitely feels better.”
This story was originally published April 3, 2021 at 10:19 AM.
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