Click here for the latest coronavirus news, which the BDN has made free for the public. You can support our critical reporting on the coronavirus by purchasing a digital subscription or donating directly to the newsroom.
PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Washburn Pentecostal Church Pastor Bruce Blakney has served his church for more than 35 years. But March was the first time he had ever preached to empty pews.
Blakney is far from the only religious leader operating in new terrain. Across Maine, churches, mosques and temples have transitioned to digital operations after Gov. Janet Mills issued limits on gatherings of 10 or more and a stay-at-home order amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
[Our COVID-19 tracker contains the most recent information on Maine cases by county]
In Aroostook County, churches lay at the center of many communities, large and small. And with their indefinite closures to the public, some may fear that a population that is among the oldest and least digitally connected in Maine would be at-risk of losing contact with their faith.
Yet, church leaders from across The County said that connecting with parishioners has not been an issue. Though they are limited to some forms of live streaming and phone calls, age or lack of internet access does not seem to be an issue as they continue to reach hundreds of congregants.
Before Gov. Mills’ stay-at-home order on March 31, many churches were able to hold live-streamed services filmed inside their churches. Because religious services are not defined as essential by the state, this is no longer officially permitted by authorities, though levels of enforcement remain to be seen.
In Blakney’s Pentecostal church, the sermons are filmed and simultaneously broadcast on Facebook Live with an iPhone, which he said would continue after Gov. Mills’ stay-at-home-order.
Though it’s a simple set-up, the first such sermon received more than 1,000 views from Washburn and other areas, including from missionaries associated with the church in Ghana and India.
Blakney said he believes that people at his church will come out of the COVID-19 matter more devout than before. As for church leadership, while it currently needs to be “a little more creative” than usual, he said this pandemic will ultimately strengthen the church’s message and presentation.
“We should be growing and learning through this process, not retreating,” Blakney said. “We should come out of it stronger than when we go in.”
Jill Plante, clerk of the Woodland Baptist Church, said the idea of live-streaming sermons was put forth by a church member who sent physical copies of the church’s sermons to her daughter in another state.
After doing some previous experimentation, on March 22 the church broadcast its first sermon live on Facebook. To its surprise, more than 2,000 people watched it, even attracting hundreds of viewers from outside the Caribou area.
Woodland Baptist pastor the Rev. Ron Rosser said that was no longer possible after the governor’s stay-at-home order. He said he would continue to perform church services from his home, including for Easter.
“The Bible requires us to be law-abiding, and the safety of our flock and neighbors is paramount,” Rosser said. “We fully intend to comply with our governor’s declaration.”
The Rev. Randall Burns, pastor of Military Street Baptist Church in Houlton, said that his 450-member church had ramped up its digital efforts in light of COVID-19. The church began live-streaming services on Youtube along with a few solo Facebook Live videos from Burns.
The videos have a simple setup: Burns in nature, preaching Bible-based positivity through the COVID-19 pandemic. He said he was surprised at how popular the Facebook Live videos had become among his congregants, especially the church’s elderly population.
In contrast to the Facebook Live videos, for the sermons on Youtube, his church was broadcasting with an elaborate camera, lights and audio set-up with help from a professional videographer.
“Because I feel like we represent the living God, it ought to be done the qualitatively best we can,” Burns said
In light of the stay-at-home order, Burns said that he and his church had pre-recorded about a dozen praise songs that they plan to insert into services in the weeks to come. Another segment will feature an associate pastor and his wife performing communion services in their home.
He still planned on recording a sermon at the church on Saturday for release on Sunday with an extremely bare-bones crew.
“As staff, I have things I need to do at the church building,” Burns said.” To record myself preaching the sermon — that seems to fit in the parameters.”
Burns said that many of the church’s members tuned in to its live stream. As for those who were unable to do so, Burns said the church’s broadcast to Houlton’s WHOU 100.1 FM radio station remains popular.
While he said it had not been difficult to reach people, Burns said that the church’s new-setup is not an optimal situation. Once this is over, he said people will deeply appreciate the value of physical interaction.
“Media’s one thing. It is a wonderful contribution at the moment,” Burns said. “But it will never take the place of face-to-face connecting.”
