OAK HILL, WV (WOAY) – While still battling through the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, churches across the region and country had to hold their Christmas Eve candlelight services in ways far from tradition to keep everyone safe.
“Last year we were outside, we bought an FM transmitter so people could sit in their cars and listen to it on the radio. Of course, we didn’t expect a snowstorm to come in on Christmas Eve, so I was standing out in the snow and it was rather cold,” says Pastor of the First Brethren Church, Michael Meadows.
Now, a year later, still facing the pandemic, many churches, like the First Brethren Church in Oak Hill, are taking their typically well-attended Christmas Eve services back to a more traditional approach in the sanctuary.
For most of them, this will include social distancing and face masks.
“This has been a crazy two years, and we all want some normal, and this kind of gives us the last opportunity to come and focus on what Christmas is all about,” Meadows says.
Whether you decide to return to the sanctuary on Christmas Eve or tune into the service another way, the First Brethren and other churches around the area are inviting everyone to attend and share in the meaning of the season.
“We the church, we are the light, we are the hope in the world, and we want to be able to share that hope and spread that light.”
If you’re unsure about attending the service in-person, the First Brethren Church will have their Christmas Eve candlelight service via radio or online, Friday, Dec. 24 at 7 p.m.
You can visit the First Brethren Church from their website or on Facebook for more information.
