Churches in session and practicing social distancing

Several Bella Vista churches have been hosting their sermons online, allowing churchgoers to attend a service of sorts while staying safe at home.

Pastor Paul Hass with Bella Vista Lutheran Church, at 1990 Forest Hills Blvd., said that, while the prerecorded sermons on the church’s website are shorter than a traditional church service, he believes that the service still fills the need of connecting people to their faith.

“This is not us doing something to compromise, this is us doing something to stay connected,” he said.

It’s also not a chance to slack off, he said.

Hass said he views the congregation as a family and during these tough times, he’s staying busier than ever comforting members of that family.

Further, he said, learning to record a sermon for viewing has not been easy. While the church already had equipment, its leadership — much like that of other area churches that are prerecording their services — found that a lot of work goes into making a decent video.

“We all look at TV and think that what they do is so simple because we see it every day,” he said. “None of that’s true.”

Hass said he’s fortunate to have people in the church who are very talented, and he’s pleasantly surprised with the quality of the video services they’ve prepared over the past three weeks.

Further south, the Bella Vista Baptist Church at 50 E. Lancashire Blvd. has been hosting online service and, last weekend, tried something different.

Renee Estes, the church’s office manager, said that the church is prerecording services and uploading them to its website and Facebook page.

Last weekend, she said, the church hosted a drivein service, with senior pastor Brent Summerhill speaking to the congregation via FM radio in their cars.

Cars were spaced for safety and churchgoers flashed their lights and honked their horns in place of applause.