MEMPHIS, Tenn. — While churches are allowed to worship in-person, some will remain virtual for Easter, while others will return for the first time.
Virtual has become the norm for many churches in the last year. The pandemic changed life as people knew it right before Easter in 2020. Churches scrambled and pivoted to continue services.
This Easter, churches like Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church and Holy Trinity say they will remain virtual.
Mississippi Boulevard will hold a communion distribution for its congregation on Saturday during a drive-thru event. Instead of an Easter egg hunt, they'll hand out gift bags to kids during that drive-thru.
“It’s a reminder that we’re still connected to a community of faith that is not defined by a building that we gather in," Senior Pastor J. Lawrence Turner said. "It’s defined by our commitment to our tenants of faith."
Resurrection Sunday will be the first time the congregation at Greater Imani Church will be welcomed back to in-person worship since the pandemic began.
“We are excited indeed," Pastor Dr. Bill Adkins. "We’ve been dealing with this pandemic now for 13 months. Members I’ve had for over 25 years that I have not seen in those 13 months.”
At Greater Imani, they have had vaccine pop-ups set up in the parking lot. With cases down and vaccinations up, Dr. Adkins said it felt like the right time to return.
He said rows will be blocked off and people will be kept apart and masked up. They also bought an electrostatic sprayer to clean the sanctuary.
Outside of Holy Trinity, 12 six foot crosses have been resurrected around its parking lot. Each is decorated by a family or member of the church unique to their experience and journey with their faith.
They're calling it the 2021 Crosswalk.
“One of our hopes with our 2021 Crosswalk is that we can offer hope to not only our church but to our neighbors who live in our neighborhood," Pastor Robert Van Ness said. "I just think we’re all looking for hope anywhere we can find it.”
Van Ness said the church space is physically small and for safety, they will continue virtual service.
After being separated for the last year, Van Ness wanted to find a way to bring the church together not only spiritually but physically while staying safe outdoors.
The crosses will stay up for the next six weeks for people to view. Online here people can read the story behind each one.
The first cross decorated in rainbow flowers represents a friend that died of COVID-19 - a somber reminder that not everyone will be here this Easter.
All pastors agreed on the especially symbolism of Easter this weekend. As the pandemic hold loosens, they see it as a resurrection of life, like what Sunday celebrates.
