Candlelight Remembrance Service Nov. 8 for Victims of COVID-19 and Saratoga Community

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Prayers, meditations and chants will be offered on behalf of those who have died in the past year, with special intention for victims of COVID-19, in a candlelight service at 5 p.m. Sunday Nov. 8, at Bethesda Episcopal Church, 26 Washington St. 

The service, which is open to the community, will be in observance of All Soul’s Day.  It will include a reading of names and prayers, as well as Gregorian chants, said the Reverend Charles Wallace, recently appointed priest in charge of Bethesda. 

“This year 2020 has been an especially difficult year. Many people have turned to their Creator for spiritual and emotional comfort.  Bethesda offers this service for people of all faiths so that we can gather as a community to commemorate all who have died, both known and unknown to us, and thereby renew our collective commitment to caring for one another,” said Father Wallace. 

The service, about 30 minutes in length, will follow the monastic Prayers for the Dead, a form with ancient roots. 

All wishing to attend and commemorate family or loved ones may register online with the Bethesda parish office at 518-584-5980, or go to the church’s website: bethesdachurch.org. 

The service will be conducted in keeping with all New York State protocols for religious gatherings. Masks will be required to be worn at all times, seating will be at distance and limited in number, and hand sanitizer will be available as people enter the church.  A free will offering opportunity will be available.