Meeting for Worship Returns to the Meeting House

06/07/20 19:27 Filed in: SBQM Update

Many will be happy to hear that following amendments to government guidelines we can once again meet for Meeting for Worship face to face, albeit at a safe distance from each other. This will run in tandem with our well attended online Meetings for Worship which will continue to run at 10am each Sunday. Face to Face Meeting for Worship will return to its usual 10:45am time each Sunday at the meeting house.

INFORMATION for the opening of Meeting July 2020

We welcome the opportunity to meet in the Meeting House again after the
Covid 19 pandemic but are mindful that there are still restrictions and risks. M&O have met and made the decision to open again for public worship on 12 July at 10.45. Video meetings on Zoom will continue for the moment to accommodate those who do not wish to come eg. because of health or distance.

The following guidelines are to inform and re-assure those who wish to attend.
They are based on advice from both Ireland Yearly Meeting and the government website. These arrangements are temporary and will be reviewed regularly.

Anyone who is vulnerable or unwell especially those who have any Covid 19 symptoms should remain at home.

The meeting House will be open from 10.30. The car park will be open as usual but be mindful of other drivers and their passengers, ensuring the maintenance of social distancing at all times.

Care should be taken not to stand at the entrance door

Only the main room and toilets will be open. Please enter the other rooms only in emergency. (except for the doorkeepers who will bring water from the kitchen for the table in the meeting room). This is to cut down on cleaning requirements, as the cleaners will need to sanitize all surfaces after each meeting. Doors will be secured open so you will not need to touch surfaces and some windows will be open to allow air to circulate.

• On entering the Meeting House members are asked to use the hand sanitiser provided and to go straight into the main room; regrettably for the time being it will not be possible to stand and chat in the foyer before going into Meeting.

• You are asked to fill the chairs furthest from the door first and to leave chairs near the door for late-comers.

• Pairs of chairs which are beside each other are for those who live in one household. Other chairs will be spaced 1 metre apart.

• No books will be placed on the table, so please bring your own copies if required.

• Unfortunately no tea and coffee will be provided for the time being, as this encourages close encounter! Water and glasses will be available on the table should they be needed.

• The library will also be unavailable initially.

• As usual for the summer, there will be no young people’s programme. Younger members may of course attend Meeting with their families if they wish.

• At the end of Meeting there will be no handshakes and after the notices those who wish to stay seated to chat in the main room should sit in the ‘spaced’, seats. Others should leave quickly taking care not to block doorways, and go straight outside where they may chat, socially distanced, in the car park or on the lawn.

• Announcements will be made as usual at both the Meeting House and at the ‘Zoom’ Meeting.

• To assist Doorkeepers all Members are asked to vacate the premises by 12.15.

There will not be a need for a ‘booking’ system as the room, spaced at 1 metre between chairs in three rows, can accommodate more than the likely numbers.

In Friendship,
M&O and clerks

SOUTH BELFAST QUAKERS

Quakers (or the Religious Society of Friends as they are also known), have held Meetings for Worship in Ireland since 1654. After a previous failed attempt to establish a lasting Belfast Meeting around 1665, the first permanent Belfast Quaker Meeting was established in 1799, and in 1810 it moved to Brewery Lane, now known as Frederick Street. It wasn’t until 1956 that a second Meeting was approved for Friends who lived in Belfast, this time based in the south of the city. South Belfast Meeting House is an active Meeting with approximately 45 adult members and attenders who worship together each Sunday. Children & Young People also play a large part in our meeting, and we have on average 22, 1-18 year olds joining us for the last 10 mins of our worship, after their own activities.

Meeting for Worship takes place at 10.45am each Sunday at our meeting house ( see address and directions on the contact page )

Alternatively you can join us on Zoom with the following details:

Meeting iD: 4613195026
Pass: 143412

South Belfast Meeting is part of the larger Ireland Yearly Meeting (see details of Quakers in Ireland below)