Norfield Congregational Church was the subject of a recent article on Patch.com.

Rev. Bernard Wilson talked about the challenges of tending to his congregation and the community in the midst of the COVID19 pandemic. “Incredibly, the size of Norfield Congregational Church’s services has doubled since the pandemic. But the hard work has only just begun.” 

Excerpt:

When the church closed the sanctuary in the third week of March following the coronavirus outbreak, it had the same fears shared by every local business. How long will this last? And how do we keep it together in the meantime?

The church’s solution of putting as much of their product online as possible mirrored that of many businesses as well. But really, how well was trying to turn the services of an active and vibrant religious community into a virtual congregation going to go?

“I’m tempted to say ‘too well,'” senior minister Rev. Bernard Wilson told Patch. “We have more people viewing our online services than attended services.”

The signal boost the internet has given to Wilson’s preaching has not only doubled the size of his congregation, but expanded its reach geographically across the nation.

Pre-Covid, the pastor would email the “Bible Verse of the Day” to members of his flock. Since March, he has been sending out “Reflections on the Bible Verse of the Day,” which include Wilson’s own ruminations, and the response from around the country has been “tremendous.”

Wilson hopes that the new reach of the Good Word he preaches can counter the new distress borne of the virus.

“What the pandemic has done, is it has raised the level of fear of being out of control,” Wilson said. “When people feel out of control, they try to figure out what will give them an anchor.”

Read the complete article here:  For this Weston Church, the Coronavirus is a Blessing and a Curse

Excerpt courtesy Patch Media