01907 Summer 2020 V3

30 | 01907
Keeping
the
faith
(and the
distance)
BY MIKE ALONGI
Surviving and enduring COVID-19,
and then plotting a way back to
"normal" has all been a bit of a blur
for The First Church in Swampscott
Congregational's pastor and
congregation.
"There have certainly been a lot of
challenges that we've faced in this time,
but we've all had to adapt and try to
make the best of the situation," said
Pastor Ian Holland, who has been the
senior minister at The First Church since
2011.
Those challenges, and more
importantly, those adaptations have
led to the current state of affairs at The
First Church. Holland conducts Sunday
service weekly at 10 a.m. per usual,
but he does it alone from the church's
sanctuary and broadcasts it via Facebook
Live and Zoom.
It is an arrangement that has brought
its share of benefits and challenges.
"To be honest, we've seen even more
participation than ever before now
that we've started the online worship,"
Holland said. "One of the great
things about this is we've had people
participate who normally wouldn't be
able to physically come to church for
one reason or another. We've had people
from all over the country — places like
Arizona, California, Florida, Maine and
even internationally from places like
Germany and the Netherlands — join
in on our sermons.
"At the same time, we've also had our
share of people who we've lost because
they're not comfortable with either the
technology or the fact that it seems very
impersonal," Holland continued. "That
is why we'd love to be able to reconnect
with those people in the church, while
still utilizing the online worship that has