Where once people gathered closely together in fellowship, new protocols prompted separation. I therefore photographed people a bit farther away than usual and tussled with the condensation caught between my mask and the camera viewfinder. But it was still the moments of God’s love in Christ that I yearned to record.
Here are a few photographs that, for me, defined this year in pictures.
In the brief pre-pandemic beginning of 2020, I photographed school children chatting before Latin class at Memorial Lutheran Church and School in Houston, as well as the Rev. Osmel Soliz Bernal, an LCMS alliance missionary from Bolivia and pastor of La Iglesia Luterana de La Victoria, catechizing a student in person (a term that later took on much more significance) at Castillo Fuerte: Casa de Misericordia in Lima, Peru.
In March, the Rev. John Zimmerman, pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Scranton, Pa., and St. John’s Lutheran Church, Pittston, Pa., read a devotion at Immanuel’s cemetery. Just a little over a week later, shelter-at- home restrictions emptied sanctuaries, priming pastors such as the Rev. Wayne Huebner of Salem Lutheran Church, Affton, Mo., to switch to livestream services.
Easter services were essentially all online, and the pandemic stretched through the summer. In July, in the quiet sanctuary of Epiphany Lutheran Church in St. Louis, organist Anna Horton, practiced by herself, overshadowed by the majestic instrument.
A student prayed in chapel at Grace Chapel Lutheran School in Bellefontaine Neighbors, Mo., as Lutheran schools went back into session for the fall, albeit a little differently, and life settled into a new routine.
The Kantorei of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Ind., performs during chapel at the Making Disciples for Life Initial Gathering on Friday, Jan. 10, 2020, at the International Center of The Lutheran ChurchMissouri Synod in St. Louis. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
Church members pray during worship at Memorial Lutheran Church and School on Sunday, Feb. 2, 2020, in Houston. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
Students queue in the hallway before class at Memorial Lutheran Church and School on Monday, Feb. 3, 2020, in Houston. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
The Rev. Osmel Soliz Bernal, an LCMS alliance missionary from Bolivia and pastor of La Iglesia Luterana de La Victoria, catechizes a student after school at Castillo Fuerte: Casa de Misericordia, on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2020, in the La Victoria area of Lima, Peru. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
The Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison, president of the LCMS, rallies Lutherans at the Gateway Arch with the Rev. Michael Salemink, executive director of Lutherans For Life, in the foreground, following the March on the Arch on Saturday, March 7, 2020, in St. Louis. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
The Rev. John Zimmerman, pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Scranton, Pa., and St. John’s Lutheran Church, Pittston, Pa., takes a moment on Wednesday, March 11, 2020, to read a devotion as he visits the church’s cemetery. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
The Rev. Wayne Huebner leads a livestream worship at Salem Lutheran Church, Affton, Mo., on Sunday, March 22, 2020. He is assisted by Vicar Brian Nowak with livestream managed by Peter Frank. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
Elder Scott Moeslein directs church members to socially distanced seating on Wednesday, June 3, 2020, before a devotional communion service at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Columbia, Ill. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
Congregation member and former church worker Ron Trampe worships at Zion Lutheran Church, St. Charles, Mo., on Saturday, June 6, 2020. This was the first worship service back in the sanctuary following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
Organist Anna Horton practices at Epiphany Lutheran Church on Tuesday, July 7, 2020, in St. Louis. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
The Rev. Dr. Thomas Egger, associate professor of Exegetical Theology, teaches Hebrew on Friday, July 17, 2020, at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
The Rev. Eric Skovgaard leads worship with Vicar Dr. Samuel Lee on Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020, at Elm Grove Lutheran Church, Elm Grove, Wis. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
The Rev. Doug Peters, pastor, surveys historic Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, on Monday, Aug. 3, 2020. A four-alarm fire engulfed the building in May 2018. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
The Rev. Andy Wright, pastor of St. John’s Lutheran Church, Keystone, Iowa, calls a congregation member outside the damaged church on Monday, Aug. 17, 2020. “The tornado sirens went off, so we went down into the basement of the parsonage. You could hear the wind and things just breaking, all around you, for about 20 to 30 minutes straight. At first we thought a tornado was hitting. But it was not until the storm was starting to dissipate that I looked outside, and saw trees down all around our street, and then I looked back at the church, and my mouth just dropped open.” On Monday, Aug. 10, a massive “derecho” wind storm tore through the Midwest, hitting thousands of square miles with winds of up to 112 mph. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
A student prays in chapel at Grace Chapel Lutheran School on Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, in Bellefontaine Neighbors, Mo. LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford
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Very well done. Thank you! This is surreal to look at. Thankful the Gospel has been able to be proclaimed in a year that feels so dark.