Want to worship on Easter Sunday? Pierce County churches offer live streams
Empty pews on Easter Sunday? For churches around Pierce County and beyond, it’s not an ideal situation to mark the most important holiday in the Christian tradition.
But with a stay-at-home order in place, while Washington continues to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, churches are turning to live-streaming options as social distancing guidelines will prevent congregations from gathering this weekend.
Aaron Stewart, senior pastor at University Place Presbyterian Church, said it’s been a challenging time for church communities in Pierce County.
“It has required a lot of adapting and trying to be creative about engaging people and their spiritual needs,” Stewart said. “To be healthy and be good neighbors, we have to distance ourselves from one another. Fortunately, we can stay connected digitally, and through the gift of email and phone calls can stay engaged with people.”
UPPC had a fairly robust digital presence before the coronavirus pandemic, which has smoothed the transition considerably. But that hasn’t made it any less difficult not to have the communal experience of gathering together as a congregation.
“Jesus’ ministry was in the flesh,” Stewart said. “Not incorporating face to face, in-the-flesh experiences is profoundly difficult.”
Stewart said UPPC has tried to live the gospel mission by focusing its efforts to how it can help make a positive impact on its community during this time, donating as much food as possible to local food banks and secondly, providing emergency childcare services for healthcare workers in the classrooms of Sunset Christian Preschool, which is housed within the church building. Stewart said around 70 families have registered and are taking advantage of the childcare, which is being provided for free.
Father Dave Mulholland, who presides over St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, as well as St. Rita’s and Holy Cross, said his outlook on the whole situation has changed over the past month. At first, he was distraught.
“I was in the church and took a picture of the empty church,” Mulholland said. “It was really distressing. I so missed having the people there.”
Then he saw a Facebook comment that read: “The church isn’t closed, the church has been deployed.” That resonated with him.
“The people are out there living in the world and bringing the light of Christ to their homes, their families,” Mulholland said. “They’re out there living the Christian life. It’s a grace that comes from something bad. It’s a powerful reminder from God that we don’t stop being a church just because the church building is closed.”
Mulholland said it’s also a chance for Christians to step back from the Easter brunches, gatherings, egg hunts, etc., and remember the true importance of the holiday.
“We can live it in a deeper, more profound way,” he said. “Going deep into what really matters.”
For Christians, it will be a strange experience, watching a live stream of their church’s worship service at home on Easter Sunday. But Stewart offered a message of solidarity.
“We want to offer encouragement for anyone and everyone that we’re together in this and that there’s hope,” Stewart said. “The lie of permanence is what fuels anxiety. We’re deconstructing that lie. And I think we’re awakening to how much fellowship and how much we need each other. We took that for granted.”
Are you looking to worship on Sunday? Here’s a schedule of what some churches in Pierce County are offering on Easter Sunday.
EASTER SUNDAY SERVICES
University Place Presbyterian Church
Traditional service: 9:30 a.m.
Contemporary service: 11 a.m.
Live stream: https://uppc.online.church/ | Website: http://uppc.org/
St. Charles Borromeo (Tacoma)
Mass: 10 a.m.
Live stream: https://www.facebook.com/pg/saintcharlesb/videos/ | Website: https://www.saintcharlesb.org/
St. Mark’s Lutheran Church by the Narrows (Tacoma)
Service: 10 a.m.
Website: http://www.smlutheran.org/
St. Patrick Catholic Church (Tacoma)
Mass: 9 a.m.
Live stream: https://www.youtube.com/user/saintpatstacoma | Website: https://www.saintpats.org/parish/
Chapel Hill Presbyterian Church (Gig Harbor)
Service: 10 a.m.
YouTube Live Stream: https://www.youtube.com/c/chapelhillchurch | Facebook Live Stream: https://www.facebook.com/ChapelHillPC/ | Website: http://www.chapelhillpc.org/
Life Center (Tacoma)
Services: 8:30 a.m., 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m.
Live stream: http://live.lifecenter.com/ | Website: https://www.lifecenter.com/
Motion Church (Puyallup)
Services: 9, 10, 11 a.m.
YouTube Stream: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqB5RNGL-QshqVBM4wQEXiQ/featured?flow=grid | Facebook Stream: https://www.facebook.com/motionchrch | Website: https://motionchrch.com/
Immanuel Presbyterian Church (Tacoma)
Service: 10:30 a.m.
YouTube Stream: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCafKRhBYEPUQS6SmMWHeq5A | Facebook Stream: https://www.facebook.com/ipctacoma/ | Website: https://ipctacoma.org/
Our Savior Lutheran Church (Tacoma)
Services: 8 a.m., 9:30 a.m., 11 a.m.
Stream: http://www.oslc.com/watch2 | Facebook Stream: http://www.facebook.com/oslctacoma| Website: http://www.oslc.com/
St. Leo Church (Tacoma)
Service: 9 p.m. (Saturday) Easter Vigil
Website: https://stleoparish.org/
Anchor Church (Tacoma)
Services: 8:30 a.m., 10 a.m. 11:30 a.m.
Live Stream: https://anchortacoma.online.church/ | Website: http://www.anchortacoma.org/
Evangelical Reformed Church (Tacoma)
Service: 10 a.m.
Website: https://solideogloria.org/
Hope Community Church (University Place)
Service: 5 p.m.
Website: Discoverhope.org
Resurrection Church
Service: 9 a.m.
Online Easter Hangout: 10:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m.
Website: https://resurrectionchurch.com/ | Hangout No. 1: https://meet.google.com/wbo-wwkw-uaw | Hangout No. 2: https://meet.google.com/arv-ouxw-trj
St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church (Tacoma)
Service: 10 a.m.
Website: www.saintandrewstacoma.org
Lutheran Church of St. Paul (Graham)
Service: 9 a.m.
Website: Www.lcspgraham.org
Living Grace Church (Tacoma)
Service: 10 a.m.
Children’s sercice: 11:30 a.m.
Facebook Stream | Website: www.lgministries.org
St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church (Tacoma)
Service: 10 a.m.
Website: https://saintandrewstacoma.org
St. Luke’s Memorial Episcopal (Tacoma)
Service: 10 a.m.
Website: https://www.stlukestacoma.org/
Tacoma Bible Presbyterian Church
Sunday school: 9:15 a.m.
Services: 10:30 a.m., 6 p.m.
Website: tacomabpc.org
St. Joseph Catholic Church (Tacoma)
Services: 10 p.m. Easter Vigil (Saturday)
11 a.m. (Sunday)
Live stream | Website: https://saintjosephtacoma.org
Eastside Baptist Church (Tacoma)
Services: 6 a.m., 10 a.m.
Website: www.eastsidebaptistchurch65.org
Want us to add your church and its live stream options for Easter Sunday to this list? Email reporter Jon Manley at jon.manley@thenewstribune.com with the name of your church, the time of Sunday’s service(s) and a link to the church’s website.
This story was originally published April 10, 2020 at 5:01 AM.
