What does it mean to be church in the city in a time of COVID-19? Sustained by the Spirit is a project developed by City Seminary of New York listening to what is taking place on the ground, and sharing what we are beginning to learn. It is about attending to the ways the Spirit is sustaining us in love, hope, and lament.
We are all just beginning to find our way in this time, but a series of questions about faith, ministry, and community in the city have helped shape this effort. How is a world of Christianity in our city living out faith amidst this global pandemic? What can we learn from other cities? With church buildings and physical places of gathering closed, how are congregations engaging in worship, ministry, and mutual support? How are pastors continuing and changing ways of ministerial care? Where are the signs of generosity, resilience, and compassion in the city? Where are we in our spiritual journeys? We can even begin to wonder: how might the church and city change post COVID-19? How will we be transformed?
As we share this resource of stories and practices, please use this as a way of learning in community, for faithful ministry in this uncertain and challenging time. We hope that this resource might help you think about how to respond and engage faithfully to the challenges and possibilities facing us.
We also hope these stories, which will be added to in the days, weeks and months to come, will spark imagination, learning, and community, in ways that complement thoughtful resources for churches in this time of COVID-19 such as these compiled by Leadership Education at Duke Divinity School, The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, and The Center for Congregations. Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning offers guidance on online teaching and learning, especially in the context of theological formation.
The Yale Youth Ministry Institute has many resources available, including a Guide to Taking Youth Ministry Online. Miroslav Volf and the Yale Center for Faith and Culture offer a podcast series available on Google, Spotify and Apple called For the Life of the World about faith in a time of pandemic.
As COVID-19 and its impact enter different phases, we will continue to update Sustained by the Spirit. Look for new additions as reopening continues and churches adapt and respond to serve the needs of their congregations and communities.
Please share with us what you are doing and learning at sbs@cityseminaryny.org.
Growing a Food Pantry Through Partnership
This is a way of expanding the reach of a food pantry. True Holy Church, located in East New York, has run a busy food pantry for a number of years, serving an average of 2,700 people per month. After the first week of the pandemic, they have remained open continuously, seeking to meet the needs of their community. The pantry now serves 5,000 people per month, will soon move into a larger and more sustainable building, and is partnering regularly with three churches in Brooklyn and one in Queens to help them develop their own food pantries.
Dinner Church is Sharing
This is the way of sharing with one another. Rev. Dr. Mia Chang and Minister Steve Ku, of NextGen Church in New Jersey, have been visiting Trenton to share hot meals for families. This is "Dinner Church", one of their mission projects, which they increased from once a month before COVID to twice a month during COVID. The church community has been invited to join in two ways: they can give remotely or can buy extra groceries when they are buying for themselves and place items in the church donation box. According to Minister Ku, "The box has never been empty" and he explained that "people are ready to give" but looking for tangible ways of doing so. Learn more about NextGen Church here.
Sanctuary of Food
This is a way of enacting "this is the body of Christ." People still need food to eat in East New York Brooklyn, especially those who live in nearby homeless shelters. Given restrictions on gathering at churches, Pastor Vivian Grubb and True Holy Church needed a new approach. As a solution, they converted their sanctuary into a place to prepare bags of food. Instead of having people come inside to shop the pantry, volunteers distributed “grab and go” bags outside. The sanctuary has become something sacred in a new and unexpected way. Learn more about True Holy Church through their website.
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Flowers from a Neighbor
This is a way to see beauty in its many forms. A member of a downtown Manhattan church organized a WhatsApp group to connect church congregants in the same zip code. Her neighbor saw flowers being tossed out by a local store, and took them home to make beautiful handmade bouquets. These were in turn distributed (following social distance guidelines) to those in the church's neighborhood group.