Aurora United Church September 2020 Congregrational Survey

Introduction

For six months now, the closure of Trinity Anglican because of the COVID-19 pandemic has prevented AUC from holding in-person worship, meetings and gatherings. All of these activities have been conducted online since the closure.

With the gradual relaxing of government restrictions on in-person gatherings (at least for the time being) and the decision of Trinity Anglican to resume in-person worship services as of September 20 (one service only at 9:00 am for the present), we thought it would be timely to ask how you are feeling about AUC’s worship and activities given that the coronavirus is still present and that the number of cases been trending upward recently.

To this end, we would greatly appreciate your participation in a brief survey, by answering the five questions below. The responses received to the survey will help AUC Council to assess the feelings of the congregation and to make informed decisions about the form of worship and gatherings that are best suited to AUC for the time ahead.

In-Person Worship Experience Requirements During COVID

Worship at Trinity Anglican would certainly have a different look and feel for AUC while the pandemic restrictions remain in place. Since we are occupying Trinity’s facilities, we would be required to comply with the pandemic measures mandated by the Anglican Diocese of Toronto for all Anglican churches in the Diocese. Based on these measures, which in turn are compliant with regional and provincial public health directives, AUC worship services would incorporate the following precautions as mandated by those parties:

- Masks must be worn in the building;
- Hand sanitizing would be required;
- Attendance at weekly services would be limited to a maximum number permitted for worship gatherings;
- Attendees would be required to book in advance;
- Physical separation of 2 metres (6 feet) must be maintained between individuals at all times;
- Every other pew would be designated for seating with marked seating spots in the pews to maintain proper distancing;
- No choir or congregational singing would be allowed;
- No Nursery or Sunday School would be allowed;
- No socializing in the narthex (entrance way) either before or following the service would not be allowed, and Coffee Time would not be allowed;
- No serving of food would be allowed; and
- Only the main level of the building would be accessible.

The Survey

Our survey is comprised of 8 questions, and follows below:

Question Title

* 1. What have you missed most about worshipping in the building?

	Missed this a lot	Missed this somewhat	Have not missed this
a. Connecting in person with everyone, including Revs. Andy and Lorraine	a. Connecting in person with everyone, including Revs. Andy and Lorraine Missed this a lot	a. Connecting in person with everyone, including Revs. Andy and Lorraine Missed this somewhat	a. Connecting in person with everyone, including Revs. Andy and Lorraine Have not missed this
b. Singing hymns and repeating responsive passages	b. Singing hymns and repeating responsive passages Missed this a lot	b. Singing hymns and repeating responsive passages Missed this somewhat	b. Singing hymns and repeating responsive passages Have not missed this
c. Watching and listening to live music – choir, hand bells, soloists	c. Watching and listening to live music – choir, hand bells, soloists Missed this a lot	c. Watching and listening to live music – choir, hand bells, soloists Missed this somewhat	c. Watching and listening to live music – choir, hand bells, soloists Have not missed this
d. In-person celebration of communion	d. In-person celebration of communion Missed this a lot	d. In-person celebration of communion Missed this somewhat	d. In-person celebration of communion Have not missed this
e. Experiencing spontaneous moments in worship	e. Experiencing spontaneous moments in worship Missed this a lot	e. Experiencing spontaneous moments in worship Missed this somewhat	e. Experiencing spontaneous moments in worship Have not missed this
f. Having Coffee Time	f. Having Coffee Time Missed this a lot	f. Having Coffee Time Missed this somewhat	f. Having Coffee Time Have not missed this

g. Other (fill in box)

Question Title

* 2. What has worked well for you with online worship?

	Worked very well	Worked well	Has not worked well
a. Flexibility	a. Flexibility Worked very well	a. Flexibility Worked well	a. Flexibility Has not worked well
b. Watch more than once	b. Watch more than once Worked very well	b. Watch more than once Worked well	b. Watch more than once Has not worked well
c. Send link to/watch with family and friends	c. Send link to/watch with family and friends Worked very well	c. Send link to/watch with family and friends Worked well	c. Send link to/watch with family and friends Has not worked well
d. Videos	d. Videos Worked very well	d. Videos Worked well	d. Videos Has not worked well
e. Outdoor settings	e. Outdoor settings Worked very well	e. Outdoor settings Worked well	e. Outdoor settings Has not worked well
f. Reached new people	f. Reached new people Worked very well	f. Reached new people Worked well	f. Reached new people Has not worked well
g. Overall quality of the online worship experience	g. Overall quality of the online worship experience Worked very well	g. Overall quality of the online worship experience Worked well	g. Overall quality of the online worship experience Has not worked well

h. Other (fill in box)

Question Title

* 3. What is causing you anxiety with respect to our church life?

	Makes me very anxious	Makes me anxious	Does not make me anxious
a. Keeping people safe from the virus	a. Keeping people safe from the virus Makes me very anxious	a. Keeping people safe from the virus Makes me anxious	a. Keeping people safe from the virus Does not make me anxious
b. Maintaining our relationships with each other	b. Maintaining our relationships with each other Makes me very anxious	b. Maintaining our relationships with each other Makes me anxious	b. Maintaining our relationships with each other Does not make me anxious
c. What is happening to our mission	c. What is happening to our mission Makes me very anxious	c. What is happening to our mission Makes me anxious	c. What is happening to our mission Does not make me anxious
d. A need to get back to normal routines	d. A need to get back to normal routines Makes me very anxious	d. A need to get back to normal routines Makes me anxious	d. A need to get back to normal routines Does not make me anxious
e. Dealing with grief together	e. Dealing with grief together Makes me very anxious	e. Dealing with grief together Makes me anxious	e. Dealing with grief together Does not make me anxious
f. The health of our finances	f. The health of our finances Makes me very anxious	f. The health of our finances Makes me anxious	f. The health of our finances Does not make me anxious

g. Other (fill in box)

Question Title

* 4. What worries you most about a re-entry to worship?

	Worries me a lot	Worries me	Does not worry me
a. Someone could contract the virus	a. Someone could contract the virus Worries me a lot	a. Someone could contract the virus Worries me	a. Someone could contract the virus Does not worry me
b. We won’t be able to follow all the rules or might forget the rules	b. We won’t be able to follow all the rules or might forget the rules Worries me a lot	b. We won’t be able to follow all the rules or might forget the rules Worries me	b. We won’t be able to follow all the rules or might forget the rules Does not worry me
c. People won’t give it more than one try	c. People won’t give it more than one try Worries me a lot	c. People won’t give it more than one try Worries me	c. People won’t give it more than one try Does not worry me
d. All the things we can’t do will defeat the rest of what we can do	d. All the things we can’t do will defeat the rest of what we can do Worries me a lot	d. All the things we can’t do will defeat the rest of what we can do Worries me	d. All the things we can’t do will defeat the rest of what we can do Does not worry me
e. Everyone we have connected with online will be dropped off the radar	e. Everyone we have connected with online will be dropped off the radar Worries me a lot	e. Everyone we have connected with online will be dropped off the radar Worries me	e. Everyone we have connected with online will be dropped off the radar Does not worry me
f. Too many complaints - no end of regulations	f. Too many complaints - no end of regulations Worries me a lot	f. Too many complaints - no end of regulations Worries me	f. Too many complaints - no end of regulations Does not worry me

g. Other (fill in box)

Question Title

* 5. Considering your own feelings and circumstances and considering that all the required precautions and restrictions will be in place, how would you feel about returning to in-person worship services at Trinity Anglican? Select one of the following responses:

a. I would feel comfortable returning to in-person worship as soon as possible

b. I would feel comfortable returning to in-person worship but not until sometime in the new year

c. I would feel comfortable returning to in-person worship only after I have been vaccinated

d. I would feel comfortable returning to in-person worship only when there is no longer a risk of contracting the virus

e. Other (fill in box)

Question Title

* 6. Would you like a call from one of our ministers?

Yes

Question Title

* 7. If you answered “yes” to Question 6, please enter the following information:

Name

Email Address

Phone Number

Question Title

* 8. Do you have any other comments? If you do, please enter them in the box below.

Thank you for your participation and your opinions. Your input will be very important in helping us to determine a way ahead for AUC.