GEORGE TOWN: With Christians looking forward to this weekend’s Christmas congregation, a church in Penang is still mindful about the Covid-19 precaution.
Trinity Methodist Church pastor Rev Shearn Sya said members of his congregation had made bookings for their relatives from afar to take part in the church’s Christmas Eve celebrations.
There are so many sign-ups that the church’s candlelight service on the night before Christmas is now only reserved for congregation members and guests, rather than members of the public.
“We have accepted a little over 200 members and guests. We are still mindful about preventing crowding for everyone’s safety although we are happy to be gathering,” he said in an interview.
Sya said although church gatherings were allowed last Christmas, the relatives could not make it back then because affordable flight tickets were hard to come by.
“This year, the relatives and even our own church members from abroad are able to return and be with us,” said the pastor of this 65-year-old church in Jalan Masjid Negeri.
The Christmas Eve service, he said, would be divided into “mini-parties” of 30 to 40 church members as well as their guests.
During the service, they will gather in the church hall to light candles from a single large candle to symbolise “the light of Jesus Christ spreading around the world”.
While the Christmas Eve candlelight service this evening is fully booked, the Christmas worship service at 10am tomorrow will be open to the public.
Sya said the Trinity Methodist Church only began fully opening its worship services in the second half of this year, with physical distancing measures to be relaxed from next year onwards.
“We still hold live online church services. Next year, that will stop and all our church members will attend the service physically,” he said.
Sya is glad that life is returning to normal for his congregation.
“We have had five church weddings in the last six months, with three of them held in the past two months alone. It has been a busy time for us all,” he said.