All the latest news from the Baptist Union

There are now very few legal restrictions relating to COVID on the operation of our churches, so as church leaders we have to decide how best to manage the risks that COVID still poses (see below). As Baptists I am sure we want to get back to fulfilling our calling to serving God in our communities without having to worry about COVID, but the risk has not gone away and will probably never completely disappear. If we won’t restart our church activities now, when will we? The challenge we face is one of balancing the risk against the benefits of our activities and finding the measures that reduce the risk the most whilst having the smallest negative impact.

Unfortunately, it is remarkably hard to be completely rational about risk and in most cases it is actually impossible to be precise about the level of risk that any course of action actually involves. We have to rely a lot on our instincts and everyone’s judgement will be different. Because of this, there are a wide range of views in most church fellowships and the wider community about what is safe and appropriate. Unfortunately, there are no easy answers and many churches will have experienced disagreement over what to do. We need to continuously remind ourselves of the need to “bear with one another in love” (Ephesians 4:2) and be patient with those who have a different perspective to our own. I pray that God will guide you and your churches together on the right path.

Looking ahead, we have now launched ticket sales for Baptist Assembly in Bournemouth on 14-15 May. We are looking forward to gathering in person, but there will be the option to join in some elements online. We’ve got some great early booking offers on tickets if you buy this month so please do book yourself in. I hope to see you there!

Yours in Christ

Richard

Richard Wilson
Support Services Team Leader