Just the name is evocative:  cool evenings, swallow flights, quiet prayers.  The Montview @ Home services have met our need for messages and music: the sermons have been thoughtful and challenging, and at the same time comforting in this period of stress and anxiety.  The music has been inspired and wonderfully varied.  What’s missing is community, the weekly coming together as a congregation.  We miss passing the peace when the ritual phrase involves a hug or a handshake, rather than a texted “Peace be with you.”  We miss passing the Communion plate to our neighbor in the pew.  We miss catching up with friends over coffee before the service and greetings in the Narthex and Commons. 

These outdoor evening services feature messages delivered in person and live music wafting over the plaza.  Vespers allows Montview members to come together as safely as can be managed during these interesting times.  Attendance is limited to 50, in accordance with public health guidelines.  Those 50 congregants must register in advance, so a list can be maintained in case future notification becomes necessary.  Participants must check in and be screened for fever and respiratory symptoms. Masks must be worn.  Social distancing is maintained by 8-foot squares taped on the pavement of the plaza.  The days of hugs and handshakes seem long gone and may not return soon.  However, as Clover has reminded us, the building is not the church.  The church is people, and, within the constraints imposed by Covid-19, Vespers allows us to be together. 

 – Submitted by Ava Navin