Return to churches an uplifting moment, say clerics
CHURCH services resumed across Northern Ireland yesterday as the main denominations started a gradual return to in-person worship on Easter Sunday.
At Stormont Presbyterian it was 100 days ago that the congregation last joined together in praise, and afterwards Rev Albin Rankin said the reunion was “uplifting and hopeful” and “another small step out of Coid-19 restrictions”.
“The last time we were together as a group was on Christmas morning,” he said after taking his first morning praise in the Upper Newtownards Road church to mark Easter Sunday.
“It’s been a long time, but the sense of emotional and spiritual healing has really lifted the spirits of everyone.”
Congregations across all denominations around Northern Ireland have been relying on online services each Sunday, with Covid-19 restrictions having closed the doors on normal church services.
But Rev Rankin is now hoping Easter will herald the start of a new beginning.
“It’s very appropriate that we were able to come together once more for Easter,” he said. “It’s a time of year that signals a new beginning, and we hope and pray that this is a step towards better times ahead.
”It was a very significant and special day for us all, but we will remain cautious,” he said.
“It was lovely to see faces again, an uplifting and hopeful day for the church community and another small step towards all our hopes being fulfilled.
“It has been a difficult time, but we have managed to survive and even thrive by staying close together through online services, telephone calls and across social media.
“But nothing beats the feeling of togetherness when you’re together.
“Face masks were worn by all, no-one hung around at the end. Everyone appreciated how special the day was to be as one again in the same physical space. It was a day filled with hope.”
At St Patrick’s Cathedral in Armagh, the leader of the Catholic Church in Ireland, Archbishop Eamon Martin, welcomed both a physical and virtual congregation and told the congregation that he was “conscious this year of the victims of the Covid crisis, including those who are finding it more and more difficult to cope with lockdown: the lonely and bereaved; those who are unable to see or embrace loved ones; those for whom the last year has brought increased financial or business worries; those whose relationships have been under great pressure; those who have found their addictions hard to manage.”
Earlier, the Archbishop had expressed concern that law makers in the Republic had neglected the spiritual wellbeing of the community during the pandemic, with only churches in Northern Ireland being permitted to allow public services over Easter weekend.
“It’s a really difficult balancing act but we would have really hoped to have some opportunity to gather in cautious, small numbers for Holy Week and Easter, as we’re doing in Northern Ireland,” he said.
“We’re really hoping for the day when across the whole island people can gather to worship safely.”