Coronavirus sparks demand for double-sealed communion.
Every week at University United Methodist Church in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, congregants come forward for Communion.
But in light of concerns about the new coronavirus, the church has ordered boxes filled with hundreds of prepackaged Communion cups and wafers.
“In a variety of ways, we’re just minimizing the level of physical touch that’s happening in the life of the church while still trying to continue somewhat normal activities,” said the Rev. Justin Coleman, who is coordinating with his staff and communicating with fellow clergy in his area about best practices for corporate worship under the new circumstances.
“What we’re saying related to Communion is that what we’re trying to do is minimize any kind of unnecessary touch here.”
Coleman said the purchase of the special cups is part of a “proactive way of thinking about our adjusting practices moving forward” along with changing how people greet one another, fill out registration cards to note their presence, and contribute to the weekly offering.
His historic church of some 1,800 members—with children’s and youth ministries as well as a significant percentage of senior adults—is far from the only one considering such packaged products for a sacred tradition across a range of Christian churches.
“Yes, we have seen a tenfold increase in sales of these items,” said Audrey Kidd, an executive of the United Methodist Publishing House, when asked if the church supplier Cokesbury had received more requests for the packaged option for Communion.
A spokesperson for LifeWay Christian Resources, an arm of the Southern Baptist Convention that offers church supplies, said ...
from Christianity Today Magazine https://ift.tt/2IJdzkg
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