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"When we finally opened, I stood at the door and cried as people came in," said St. Paul's Episcopal Church pastor the Rev. Rob Bacon.<br />
ST. PAUL'S, continued from page 36<br />
you're preaching live and can see everyone's<br />
face and body language, you know if you're<br />
reaching everyone. When you preach to a<br />
camera, you're just hoping."<br />
On May 2, the church held a soft<br />
reopening, allowing a maximum of 20<br />
congregants to come back in and sit in the<br />
pews. Over the next few weeks, more and<br />
more members were allowed to return as<br />
confidence built up about vaccines and<br />
safety measures.<br />
"When we finally opened, I stood at the<br />
door and cried as people came in," Bacon<br />
said.<br />
Not everything is back to normal. They<br />
don't use a shared cup for Communion,<br />
and effective Aug. 28, the diocese returned<br />
to requiring masks inside churches. As<br />
a result of the Delta variant's surge this<br />
summer, they are keeping an eye on how<br />
things progress.<br />
Bacon said that the whole pandemic<br />
has been hard, and the church has lost<br />
members to the virus. Every time, though,<br />
the community has come together to offer<br />
help.<br />
"Even though it's sad, it's been a<br />
glue that held us together. Even in total<br />
lockdown, people open their door and<br />
there's all these groceries and meals on the<br />
step," Bacon said. "The people take care of<br />
each other. All you have to do is ask."
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