Our local Coronavirus stance

At the parish churches in Cross Roads, Haworth and Stanbury:

we will all continue to pray for the sick and for carers, and will do so whether we are among those happy to be together in church, among those more cautious at home, or among those self isolating;

we will heed national advice to minimize possibilities of infection at services (cleaning surfaces, having paper towels by our basins, washing our hands, not sharing a handshake at the Peace, not passing the collection plate from person to person, not sharing wine at Communion, not sharing refreshments after services);

we will seek to be aware of those who usually attend worship but are not with us, and begin to build a system to be in touch by phone and to try to make some prayer and reflection resources available to them;

we would welcome any information about church members or neighbours who find themselves stuck on their own or upset so that we can try to offer the right practical or spiritual support to anybody;

and, unless national advice changes or people stay away, we will continue to organise regular and special events (from weekly Friday Church to special Holy Week drama), although at the moment we have stopped going into Care Homes.

The photo is from the east window in St James', Cross Roads (and we've used it to accompany a Lent focus on Rembrandt's 'Return of the Prodigal Son'); we see that the village's Facebook page is full of offers to shop for neighbours if needed.