Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the EPC’s 40th General Assembly will be virtual only, with no on-site component at Hope Church in Cordova, Tenn. The National Leadership Team (NLT) made the decision in a July 30 meeting.

“I am grateful of the NLT’s careful and prayerful consideration of the questions and concerns my office has received in recent weeks,” said Jeff Jeremiah, Stated Clerk. “While we all have full confidence the ability of Rufus Smith’s team at Hope Church to conduct a safe event, the NLT felt that a cautious approach was wise given the recent surge in positive cases.”

Originally scheduled for June 23-26, the Assembly was rescheduled for September 17-18 in a called meeting held on May 1.

“A key assumption we all had in May when we postponed GA to September was that the COVID-19 shutdown would be over by the fall and life would be returning to some kind of normal,” Jeremiah added. “However, based on the information available to us in late July it looks like a return to ‘normal’ by mid-September is very unlikely.”

Tom Werner, NLT Chairman, said the safety of participants—including Hope Church’s staff and volunteers—was foremost in the groups minds as they discussed the situation.

“Reports I have seen show the middle part of the country starting to see a spike in cases now, like my home state of Missouri, Florida, Texas, and others have in recent weeks,” Werner said. “None of us wanted to put our Commissioners or anyone at Hope Church at risk.”

The virtual event will still be “business only” with no Leadership Institute. Online registration has been paused until Monday, August 3, to allow for programming adjustments.

For more information and regular updates about the 40th General Assembly, see www.epc.org/ga2020.