Slideshow image

Hello and welcome to COVID Communiqué 46. We face a second Easter separated from one another — a situation none of us foresaw as we grappled with what we believed to be the once-in-a-lifetime loss of Easter 2020. Last year, fear and the unknown overshadowed what celebrations we managed. In 2021, fear remains because of the virus’s mutations, but we know much more and we have real cause for hope as vaccinations are delivered. Hope — the promise of a spring and summer where our world gets safer every day — is a wonderful blessing that will help to carry us through the darkness of Good Friday and manifest the promise of Easter. 

In other hopeful news, Ottawa Public Health and Renfrew County and District Health Unit have both added faith leaders to their lists of people eligible to receive a vaccination (depending on availability of the vaccine). You can read more about which faith leaders this applies to in Ottawa here and in Renfrew here. At the time of writing, the other health units within the diocese have not announced plans to vaccinate ministers, but we will keep an eye out for those decisions. 

As we said last week, faith communities can play an important role in encouraging members to get vaccinated — so when you get your vaccination, get a picture! Posted on your website and on social media, it will say a thousand words about the importance of vaccination and your confidence in the process. 

Please continue to look for ways to encourage people to register for the vaccine: a message on your website, a piece in an online newsletter or through an email blast, perhaps a phone tree: you’ll know the best ways to reach your people. In the same message, you could suggest they check whether friends and family need help to register for an appointment. 

We’d also like to highlight an issue that might arise as the number of people who are vaccinated increases and we can think about opening up again. There may be pressure to organize events and activities only for people who have been vaccinated. However, because some people who have compromised immune systems can’t be vaccinated, we cannot limit gatherings to only those who have been vaccinated. For the foreseeable future, safety protocols must be maintained, and must apply to everyone. 

If you have any questions about supporting vaccination, or anything else, please contact the COVID-19 help desk: C19helpdesk@ottawa.anglican.ca. 

COVID Communiqué is produced by our senior staff:Shane Parker, Bishop
Beth Bretzlaff, Dean
Linda Hill, Executive Archdeacon
Sanjay Grover, Director of Financial Ministry
Peter John Hobbs, Director of Community Ministries
Jane Scanlon, Director of Communications & Stewardship Development
Carol Sinclair, Director of Human Resources
Michael Garner, Public Health Advisor