COVID-19 Information

August 13, 2021 Update:

Dear Cove Church family, 

Wow, what a difference a few days can make! I’m writing in response to Governor Kate  Brown’s recent mask mandate. If you’re unaware, as of today (Friday) masks are required for all indoor gatherings for ages 5 years and up (see official administrative rule here). A few things as we prepare to abide by the new mandate at Cove Church… 

While I can’t think of many scenarios where this is entirely welcome news, it is where we find ourselves given the new variant of the virus. I want to take a few short sentences to provide some context concerning the considerations that have, and will continue to, inform our response(s). My prayer is that while this may not solve some of our wearied frustrations, it may provide some helpful clarity and hope. 

First: Love. We’ve done our best to always ask the question, “what is most loving to our community?” As you can imagine, the answer to this question usually has many layers, especially during COVID; certainly not an easy consensus to come to. Even so, any time we’ve been able to place decisions and options for your (and your family’s) health in your hands, we believe this to be most loving. This is held in tension with consideration for the health of the broader community and governmental mandates. This leads me to our next consideration. 

Second: Honoring, praying for, and participating in/with civil authority. Our Christian worldview makes unequivocal our primary allegiance is to Jesus. Yet, throughout the New Testament (NT) the Christ-follower is called to pray for, submit to,  honor, live at peace with, and respect civil authority among other things (Romans 13, 1  Peter 2, 1 Timothy 2, Titus 3). In fact, our NT writers seem to make clear their main reason for this instruction- God is in control, and this includes the establishment of government leaders. Does anyone else find this a difficult pill to swallow sometimes?! This can be especially tough when there are certain government leaders with whom we fundamentally disagree. Certainly, we find instances in Scripture where Christ-followers find themselves in the painful place of being forced to choose between a mandate from a civil authority in direct conflict with a mandate from Jesus. Let’s reserve that for another letter we hopefully never have to write! All this to say, Cove Church family, we are doing our best to honor, submit to, and live at peace with our local government(s). 

Given this, the final consideration: Consistency. We’ve done our best to be consistent in terms of following state and local mandates including masks, social distancing, and capacity limits. Likewise, when mandates were lifted, we chose to place these health decisions in your hands. Again, we’ve worked to tether ourselves to consistency amidst the rapidly shifting sand of the pandemic. 

Let me end with some encouragement I shared with our staff this week. It comes from Isaiah, who is prophesying about the reign of Jesus, “Of the increase of His government and of peace there will be no end.” (Isaiah 9:7, ESV) Listen to it in The Message, “His ruling authority will grow, and there’ll be no limits to the wholeness he brings.” 

Cove Church, Jesus is not surprised by any of this, and He is in control. His Kingdom (authority, power, presence) is growing, it can’t be stopped, and it’s bringing more and more peace and wholeness with it! This is what we get to commit to prayer and participate in. 

I look forward to seeing you this weekend, either online or in person! 

Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions at the email below. I love you and  I’m praying for you. 

Blessings, 
Pastor Brandon 

More Campus Information:

Service times:

Saturdays - 6PM Online Only

Sundays - 9AM & 11AM On-Campus and Online

Watch online here: covechurchpnw.online.church

Giving and Bulletins - Online giving is available at any time and we are still receiving mail at the office (1790 Charnelton St., Eugene, OR 97401), so checks are still accepted as well! We also have gone digital with our bulletins. You are able to easily access our online event information using your phone by scanning the QR code at the beginning of our services or by visiting our website!

Wearing of Masks - Masks are required for all indoor gatherings for everyone ages 5 years and up as per current state mandates. This includes any indoor event or small group gathering. 

Sanitization - Hand sanitizing stations are available and our staff has procedures in place to sanitize frequently used areas on a regular basis.

In-person Service Seating - We have increased our seating to allow for more options for social distancing while still maintaining a 3' distance between rows. 

Cove Kids - Cove Kids is available at both Sunday services for ages 0-5th Grade. Masks are required for all kids ages 5 and up. 

We can't wait to see you soon online or in person! Our church is wherever you are, and we love celebrating Jesus with you from near or far.

For any questions, please contact