The human spirit will endure sickness;
but a broken spirit—who can bear?
An intelligent mind acquires knowledge,
and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.
— Proverbs 18:14-15

Omicron variant of COVID-19

The number of daily COVID cases has grown rapidly since mid-December 2021. Even if you are fully vaccinated, it is possible to catch the new variant and experience symptoms – however, you are unlikely to need hospitalization or die, particularly if you have received a booster shot. We want the 7-day daily case rate to be below 50 cases/100K people, but as of January 5, we’re at 730 cases/100K people! This data is available here: Key indicators of COVID-19 activity – King County

King County FAQ for religious and faith-based groups

From King County’s blog, Aug. 5, 2021: Three recent COVID-19 outbreaks – and what the data says about how to prevent a larger surge in cases – PUBLIC HEALTH INSIDER

What we need to understand: Immune systems take time to rid your body of the virus, even if they “know what to look for” because you are vaccinated. Asymptomatic / presymptomatic COVID cases distribute virus through the air. The amount of initial viral load definitely affects how much stress is placed on a person’s immune system, and masking/distancing reduces spread and risk to everyone – vaccinated or not.

In-person services are every other week – check the calendar on the homepage.

Our Covid-19 cleaning and prep guidelines apply to everyone who is using the sanctuary.

The global pandemic has seriously affected all areas of our lives. COVID-19 is a completely different kind of disease that is extremely contagious. It is very dangerous for people aged 65 and up. It causes tiny blood clots throughout the body, even in otherwise asymptomatic patients. We don’t know why young people and children are less likely to have severe symptoms (although some of them do). We know that vaccines work well, and they eliminate hospitalization and death except in some cases where the person is immunocompromised and at risk from exposure to any disease. We have been holding worship online. We are creating YouTube videos every week which follow the usual order of service, and you may read them in text form here: Online Services

We are reinstating worship services biweekly: if infection rates go down (and stay down) we may begin weekly in-person services in the fall. This allows an opportunity to integrate online worship with in-person worship, without putting too much pressure on staff as we work out all of the kinks in livestreaming, the soundboard, camera placement, and other logistics.