​Dear Holston Friends,
We are all in this together. Holston Conference has churches in three states with three different governors which causes a lot of confusion. The confusion is created when some government officials state that everything can be reopened by May 1, 2020. Other health and government officials have disagreed with that timetable. There are so many things that we still do not know about the Covid-19 Virus. We do know that certain populations are more at risk. We do know that social distancing is making a difference. We do know that persons may not have any symptoms of the virus, but may be spreading it to others. We do know that there is no vaccine or treatment to date. It is important not to quit, after we have come this far. We do know that a Life Care Facility in Athens, Tennessee has fifty residents who have the virus. That came from somewhere.     
Today in a Zoom meeting with the district superintendents, I learned that our United Methodist Churches are just as confused by the mixed messages as everybody else is. Please hear me. This is not an easy decision, but the Cabinet and I do not want our United Methodist Churches to be open at this time.  Lives in our communities need to be protected. This virus has taken the lives of little children, medical personnel, young adults, older adults, African Americans, Hispanic persons, those with compromised immune systems, and so many more. Our United Methodist Churches are not to be open. We will reopen our churches when it is safe to do so across the entire Conference. We all yearn to be able to gather together again.  
I have been to the funerals of two family members and they were very limited graveside services. I have spoken with Bishops in other denominations about the need to continue to practice sheltering in place.  They indicated that they were not going to reopen their churches at this time as well. It is just difficult when there are competing reasons to reopen everything.  
As states begin to loosen “Stay at Home” orders and phase in the reopening of businesses and organizations, there will continue to be differing opinions on the best process to follow that will keep communities safe while, at the same time, provide economic stability.  As an Annual Conference, we are aware that many people in our churches will have differing opinions too.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Conference has worked to keep health and safety as the top priority when making decisions pertaining to church, district, and conference activities.
Keeping those priorities in mind while, at the same time, realizing a continued rise in case numbers and deaths, and realizing that people can be carriers of the COVID-19 virus without knowing it or exhibiting any symptoms, the Cabinet and I continue to believe that church buildings shall remain closed to the public until further notice. This applies not only to times of worship and church activities, but also to outside organizations as well, such as, but not limited to day cares, preschools, support groups (AA, NA, Al-Anon, Grief Share, Etc.), food pantries, and Scouts. 
I know that pastors are being pressured to reopen daycares for parents who are needing to go back to work. Friends, our schools are closed across Tennessee, Virginia, and Georgia for a reason. I know that our United Methodist Churches are committed to doing incredible outreach in their communities. 
We understand that people are eager to worship together again. We also know the Holston Conference encompasses three different states in which the Governors of those states are not working on the same timeline for the reopening of their states. We feel the best decision for the Conference is to “reopen” in a unified and measured manner. Even then, it will not automatically be back to being fully open from the start. We will work on and submit guidelines to implement a gradual reopening so we can continue making the health and safety of our church people as well as our communities the highest priority. As Conference leadership, we do not take this responsibility lightly. We have to look at the bigger picture.
We understand these are difficult times but we also know we have a witness in our communities even in these uncertain times. Thank you for the creative and innovative work you are doing to keep the church together during this time of separation. Your ministry is allowing the church to be a bright beacon of light to guide God’s people through this challenging time.
Please know that your Cabinet and I are praying for the pastors and congregations across our beloved Holston. We trust that you are praying for us as well.

God’s grace, mercy and peace are always more than sufficient,
Bishop Dindy Taylor
Holston Conference
The United Methodist Church

A Statement from Bishop Taylor
Dear Holston Friends,
“Let us approach the throne of grace with boldness,
So that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
This Covid-19 Pandemic continues to challenge us in ways we cannot imagine. Our pastors find themselves torn between the desire to reopen our churches, resume corporate worship, and continue to follow the governmental mandates to socially distance ourselves from one another. The governors of Georgia and Tennessee have announced they are ready to loosen stay at home orders and allow businesses to reopen in the near future while continuing to follow CDC guidelines of no groups larger than 10 persons. Governor Ralph Northam of Virginia is urging widespread testing for the virus before he will ease the stay at home restrictions that are in place until June 10, 2020.
 Listening to the news, I hear the recurring theme from healthcare professionals that they are looking at data rather than announcing a date to reopen their areas. I am thankful for the faithful conference staff that strives to assist our local churches to be in ministry in their communities while doing their best to do no harm. In this unparalleled time, the ministry of the Church is more important than ever. I along with the Extended Cabinet yearn for the time we will be able to safely gather together again in our church buildings.  At this time, we do not have enough information about this deadly Covid-19 virus to reverse the previous mandate without endangering the safety of our church families and communities by allowing our churches to reopen. We will continue assessing the situation within our conference bounds and will reopen as soon as we feel it is safe.
 I want to commend the conference staff who met today to imagine doing the upcoming annual conference in a new, “we’ve never done it that way before” approach. In light of this global pandemic, the Holston Annual Conference, that was to meet June 7-10, 2020 at Lake Junaluska, NC, has been postponed and will be rescheduled as a Virtual Annual Conference on Saturday, June 27, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. Our theme for annual conference is “I Love to Tell the Story." There will be a pre-Conference briefing on June 7 to discuss all materials and procedures for our Virtual Annual Conference. Additional information and announcements will be coming soon.
 Moving day, across the conference, will be Wednesday, June 24, 2020, and the Pastor’s last official Sunday to preach in their current appointment will be June 13, 2020. Pastors will be paid through June 30 from their present appointment. The first Sunday to preach in their new appointment will be July 5. 
 During this season of Eastertide, let us rejoice and be glad we serve the risen Savior who goes before and protects us in these uncertain times.
 
God’s Grace, Mercy, and Peace are always sufficient,
Dindy Taylor
Resident Bishop
Holston Conference of
The United Methodist Church

he Great Three Days—sometimes called the Tridium or Pasch—from sunset Maundy Thursday through sunset Easter Day are the climax of Lent (of the whole Christian Year) and a bridge into the Easter Season.  These days proclaim the paschal mystery of Jesus Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection.  During these days, the community journeys with Jesus from the upper room, to the cross, to the tomb, and to the garden.  They should be seen as a great unified service beginning with a service Maundy Thursday evening and concluding with the service of Easter Day.  These services are connected with a prayer vigil lasting from Good Friday evening until the service of Easter.
On Holy Thursday we remember and celebrate the final supper Jesus shared with his disciples in the context of Passover.  This event, which reveals the holiness of all meals eaten in his name, institutes the mystery of his abiding redemptive presence in the church’s celebration of the Lord’s Supper, or Holy Communion.  This day is called “Maundy Thursday,” a term derived through Old French mande’ from the Latin mandatum novum, “a new commandment” associated with John 13:34: “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.  Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.”
Due to our current physical distancing requirements, we will not be celebrating Holy Communion as part of the Maundy Thursday service.  Instead, in keeping with the traditions of the ancient church, we will share in a virtual Passover meal including Jesus' admonition to "...love one another..." 
Before participating in the video livestream, please prepare a small pitcher of water for your table, a bowl or basin, and a towel for each participant in your home.  Jesus demonstrated his love for the disciples by washing their feet.  On Thursday, we will share Jesus love as we wash the hands of those with whom we gather.  If you will be alone in your home, please know that, as you wash your own hands, you share in Jesus' love by being clean--for HIM!  
A Service of Tenebrae, or “Darkness,” on Good Friday evening is based on a twelfth-century service which is an extended meditation on the passion of Christ.  During the service, all light is extinguished to signify that Christ, “the Light of the World,” has been “put out.”  Tradition holds that all lights, in the church and in our homes, are to be extinguished until they are relit from the Paschal Candle during the worship service on Easter morning.
Both the Maundy Thursday and Good Friday services will be posted on the First UMC Newport YouTube channel and on www.fumcnewport.org by 7:00 p.m. each evening.