Covid-19 Update

Fellowship West Family Talk | 9.26.21

We’re living in a fragmented world, but as Ephesians reminds us, the Gospel unites followers of Jesus. This is an abbreviated communication of our Family Talk delivered on Sunday, September 26th. We encourage you to watch the video above for the full explanation of our plan, and the heart behind it.

Fellowship West Family,

In May, we announced that our church leadership no longer had any official ask regarding Covid-19 protocols. Cases in our church community were at zero and very low in our Knoxville area. Hospitalizations were also at minimal levels and the vaccine had been readily available for all adults for 6 weeks.

Unfortunately, the situation in our church community and local community is very different today. We have several congregants who are, or have recently been positive for Covid-19. Our community numbers are high, but especially concerning is the impact on the local health system. While the past week has shown a cases decline, that we hope persists for the foreseeable future, many of our Fellowship doctors, nurses and health care workers are experiencing exhaustion, frustration, and grief.

In 1 Peter 5, the Scripture compels the Elders of the church to “shepherd God’s people”. This great responsibility to love, guide, protect and spiritually care for the church is to be done willingly and with humility fo the good of God’s people.

Recently, our staff and elder teams, along with our Covid-19 advisory committee, met to discuss the current public health challenges we’re facing. While there are many viewpoints on how to best navigate through the Pandemic, the unquestioned Christian position and posture toward our brothers and sisters who are hurting is compassion and care. At the very least this means resisting the natural tendency to become desensitized to our neighbors suffering, fervently and frequently praying for those who are hurting, and in the spirit of obedience, taking action to make an impact, even if it seems small.

With this in mind, our leadership team has developed a 3-step plan of action for the month of October, to help curb the effects of Covid-19 in our congregation and community.

1. Weather permitting (regarding temperature and rain) we will host our adult Worship gatherings outdoors in the courtyard. Here are our reasons:

A. Tennessee Fall weather is very pleasant, making it prudent to move outdoors at this time.
B. We have several Fellowship West families who are not worshipping with us in person because of elevated risk or complications from Covid-19.
Our facility creates a wonderful sense of family but is very limited in allowing for ample social distancing with large crowds. Outdoor services will allow more of our at-risk or self-
isolating church members to participate in person.
C. Outdoor services will allow for a much freer experience, with fewer precautions, etc
D. This will allow us to use the café and auditorium for our Fellowship Kids ministry to spread out more in their small group time.

2. During the weeks of October, when the weather does not permit outdoor gatherings, we will meet indoors and ask you to consider joining our Elders and Staff in wearing a face-covering where adequate  social space cannot be maintained. We especially ask this on behalf of and for our unvaccinated participants.
 
   ** We recognize that there is sensitivity and controversy surrounding masks. This is not a mandate, but in the spirit of “one another” a free exercise of neighbor love.

3. We will emphasize the pursuit of truth.
The church’s testimony and witness are hurt when it is responsible for promoting and propagating falsehood in the name of Jesus. How do we respond to claims that the vaccine is the “Mark of the Beast” or other conspiracy theories, in truth and grace? How do we discern between the conflicting information about Covid-19? We’ll address those questions with our greatest effort of Christian faithfulness in the days ahead.

Finally, let it be known, that if there are people who can walk in truth and love during these challenging days it is the people of Jesus. And if there is a local church that can continue to lead faithfully, it is Fellowship West!

On behalf of our elders, staff, and advisory team, thank you for being a gracious, patient, and resilient people. We are forever grateful.

Grace and Peace,
Brad Raby
Lead Pastor


Fellowship West Covid Update | 5.4.21

Dear Fellowship West Family,
I’m writing you today on behalf of our Elders and Staff leadership teams, to update you on our church’s COVID-19 policies. It seems prudent to issue a communication update in response to local and State government updates to community health guidelines.

First, thank you for being so gracious over the past 15 months. In a season where it would have been easy for turmoil and dissension to encroach upon our unity and mission, the overall response of our faith community has been perseverance, grace, and understanding.

During the past year our leadership team, in partnership with an advisory team made up of physicians in our congregation, has strived to be thoughtful and consistent regarding health and safety guidelines. Our aim in issuing recommendations or establishing certain policies has been driven by love of neighbor, our testimony in the community, and civic responsibility. In response to the change in our community health conditions and expectations, we are updating our request of you, the church family.

Since regathering in late July, we’ve encouraged face-coverings where social distancing was not possible to protect one another from virus transmission. In light of vaccine availability and the percentage of folks who have reached immunity in our community, we no longer have any official request regarding the use of face-coverings. The use of a face covering is optional and up to each individual and/or family to discern what the best. This applies to all areas of ministry, including children and volunteers participating in Fellowship Kids.

Our Fellowship Kids team and medical advisory team do continue to strongly urge individuals and families to practice good hygiene and avoid in-person gatherings when experiencing the core symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, coughing, body aches, fatigue, loss of taste or smell, etc.)

Again, thank you for your faithful commitment to our mission and one another.
In His Service,

On behalf of the Fellowship West Leadership Team
Brad Raby, Lead Pastor

Covid-19 Update

Fellowship West 
Family Talk | 9.26.21

We’re living in a fragmented world, but as Ephesians reminds us, the Gospel unites followers of Jesus. This is an abbreviated communication of our Family Talk delivered on Sunday, September 26th. We encourage you to watch the video above for the full explanation of our plan, and the heart behind it.

Fellowship West Family,

In May, we announced that our church leadership no longer had any official ask regarding Covid-19 protocols. Cases in our church community were at zero and very low in our Knoxville area. Hospitalizations were also at minimal levels and the vaccine had been readily available for all adults for 6 weeks.

Unfortunately, the situation in our church community and local community is very different today. We have several congregants who are, or have recently been positive for Covid-19. Our community numbers are high, but especially concerning is the impact on the local health system. While the past week has shown a cases decline, that we hope persists for the foreseeable future, many of our Fellowship doctors, nurses and health care workers are experiencing exhaustion, frustration, and grief.

In 1 Peter 5, the Scripture compels the Elders of the church to “shepherd God’s people”. This great responsibility to love, guide, protect and spiritually care for the church is to be done willingly and with humility fo the good of God’s people.

Recently, our staff and elder teams, along with our Covid-19 advisory committee, met to discuss the current public health challenges we’re facing. While there are many viewpoints on how to best navigate through the Pandemic, the unquestioned Christian position and posture toward our brothers and sisters who are hurting is compassion and care. At the very least this means resisting the natural tendency to become desensitized to our neighbors suffering, fervently and frequently praying for those who are hurting, and in the spirit of obedience, taking action to make an impact, even if it seems small.

With this in mind, our leadership team has developed a 3-step plan of action for the month of October, to help curb the effects of Covid-19 in our congregation and community.

1. Weather permitting (regarding temperature and rain) we will host our adult Worship gatherings outdoors in the courtyard. Here are our reasons:

A. Tennessee Fall weather is very pleasant,
making it prudent to move outdoors at this
time.
B. We have several Fellowship West families
who are not worshipping with us in person
because of elevated risk or complications
from Covid-19. Our facility creates a
wonderful sense of family but is very limited in
allowing for ample social distancing with large
crowds. Outdoor services will allow more of
our at-risk or self-isolating church members to
participate in person.
C. Outdoor services will allow for a much freer
experience, with fewer precautions, etc
D. This will allow us to use the café and
auditorium for our Fellowship Kids ministry to
spread out more in their small group time.

2. During the weeks of October, when the weather does not permit outdoor gatherings, we will meet indoors and ask you to consider joining our Elders and Staff in wearing a face-covering where adequate  social space cannot be maintained. We especially ask this on behalf of and for our unvaccinated participants.
 
   ** We recognize that there is sensitivity and controversy surrounding masks. This is not a mandate, but in the spirit of “one another” a free exercise of neighbor love.

3. We will emphasize the pursuit of truth.
The church’s testimony and witness are hurt when it is responsible for promoting and propagating falsehood in the name of Jesus. How do we respond to claims that the vaccine is the “Mark of the Beast” or other conspiracy theories, in truth and grace? How do we discern between the conflicting information about Covid-19? We’ll address those questions with our greatest effort of Christian faithfulness in the days ahead.

Finally, let it be known, that if there are people who can walk in truth and love during these challenging days it is the people of Jesus. And if there is a local church that can continue to lead faithfully, it is Fellowship West!

On behalf of our elders, staff, and advisory team, thank you for being a gracious, patient, and resilient people. We are forever grateful.

Grace and Peace,
Brad Raby
Lead Pastor


Fellowship West
Covid Update | 5.4.21

Dear Fellowship West Family,
I’m writing you today on behalf of our Elders and Staff leadership teams, to update you on our church’s COVID-19 policies. It seems prudent to issue a communication update in response to local and State government updates to community health guidelines.

First, thank you for being so gracious over the past 15 months. In a season where it would have been easy for turmoil and dissension to encroach upon our unity and mission, the overall response of our faith community has been perseverance, grace, and understanding.

During the past year our leadership team, in partnership with an advisory team made up of physicians in our congregation, has strived to be thoughtful and consistent regarding health and safety guidelines. Our aim in issuing recommendations or establishing certain policies has been driven by love of neighbor, our testimony in the community, and civic responsibility. In response to the change in our community health conditions and expectations, we are updating our request of you, the church family.

Since regathering in late July, we’ve encouraged face-coverings where social distancing was not possible to protect one another from virus transmission. In light of vaccine availability and the percentage of folks who have reached immunity in our community, we no longer have any official request regarding the use of face-coverings. The use of a face covering is optional and up to each individual and/or family to discern what the best. This applies to all areas of ministry, including children and volunteers participating in Fellowship Kids.

Our Fellowship Kids team and medical advisory team do continue to strongly urge individuals and families to practice good hygiene and avoid in-person gatherings when experiencing the core symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, coughing, body aches, fatigue, loss of taste or smell, etc.)

Again, thank you for your faithful commitment to our mission and one another.
In His Service,

On behalf of the Fellowship West Leadership Team
Brad Raby, Lead Pastor