27 Pictures Of Religion During The Coronavirus Pandemic

Religious groups across all creeds are coming to terms with a new normal in which socially distant does not have to mean spiritually apart.

By
Gabriel H. Sanchez
by Gabriel H. Sanchez

Senior Photo Essay Editor

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On Monday, a Florida pastor was arrested and charged in Tampa Bay for disobeying local social distancing measures by holding large church services despite warnings from authorities. In a state where cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, have surpassed 6,000, the arrest marks an escalation in Florida's handling of the outbreak and highlights the difficult reality facing many places of worship around the globe.

Religious groups across all creeds, many of which hold services in intimate quarters, are coming to terms with a new normal in which socially distant does not have to mean spiritually apart. In places hit hardest by the coronavirus outbreak, services are being held remotely, and special precautions are being made to ensure the safety of religious ceremonies. Still, some worshippers continue to gather in large numbers during the pandemic, choosing to place their lives in the hands of their deities over science-based warnings from public officials.

These pictures show how different faiths around the world are navigating the coronavirus pandemic.

Adriano Machado / Reuters

Ademar Kyotoshi Sato, a Buddhist monk wearing a protective mask, prays at the empty temple Shin Budista Terra Pura de Brasilia in Brasilia, Brazil, on March 23.

Brett Carlsen / Getty Images

Pastor Greg Locke of Global Vision Bible Church holds services in the church parking lot in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, on March 29.

Piero Cruciatti / Getty Images

Coffins of the deceased are stored in the church of San Giuseppe in Seriate, Italy, on March 26.

Brian Snyder / Reuters

Sheikh Fuad Mohamed, imam at the Muslim American Society of White Center, livestreams his Friday sermon from his home in Seattle on March 20.

Pier Marco Tacca / Getty Images

Don Giuseppe Corbari celebrates Mass in front of portraits and selfies sent by parishioners in Robbiano, Italy, on March 17.

Elaine Thompson / AP

A cellphone is used to livestream Mass by Archbishop Paul D. Etienne at St. James Cathedral in Seattle on March 28.

Ammar Awad / Reuters

Jewish worshippers stand apart as they practice social distancing at the plaza of the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City on March 31.

Tiziana Fabi / Getty Images

People listen from their homes as priests celebrate Sunday Mass from the roof of the San Gabriele dell'Addolorata church in Rome on March 29.

Jeenah Moon / Getty Images

A Bible phrase from the book of Isaiah adorns the outside of a church in New York City on March 12.

Andrew Kelly / Reuters

Hasidic Jewish men gather for a morning prayer outside of a synagogue, closed due to the coronavirus outbreak, in South Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on March 18.

Jose Luis Gonzalez / Reuters

Members of the Psalm 100 evangelical church, dressed as angels and holding signs making reference to the coronavirus, are seen during a demonstration at the Paso del Norte international border bridge in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, on March 23.

Ahmad Gharabli / Getty Images

Israeli security forces arrest an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man as they close a synagogue in the Mea Shearim neighborhood in Jerusalem on March 30.

Lillian Suwanrumpha / Getty Images

Buddhist monks from Wat Matchantikaram temple wear face shields as they collect alms in Bangkok on March 31.

Barcroft Media / Getty Images

A Muslim man walks through a disinfection chamber before worshipping at Ploso Kuning Mosque in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, on March 27.

Trisnadi / AP

Muslim men perform Friday prayer at the distance of about three feet from each other at the Al Akbar mosque in Surabaya, Indonesia, on March 20.

Luis Tato / Getty Images

A woman prays for the end of the coronavirus outbreak while sitting alone in the Nairobi Baptist Church during a livestreamed service in Nairobi on March 22.

Ozan Kose / Getty Images

A municipal worker disinfects the Panagia Altimermer Orthodox Greek Church on March 15.

Ezra Acayan / Getty Images

A woman prays before a religious icon covered with a cloth as a measure to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at a church in Parañaque, Philippines, on March 11.

Nurphoto / Getty Images

Hindu women offer water to Lord Sun as they perform the ritual of Gangaur in Jaipur, India, on March 27.

Asif Hassan / Getty Images

A worker disinfectants a Hindu temple in Karachi, Pakistan, on March 30.

Yegor Aleyev / Yegor Aleyev/TASS

Workers apply disinfectant to surfaces at the Galiev Mosque in Kazan, Russia, on March 24.

Bandar Aldandani / Getty Images

An aerial view shows an empty white-tiled area surrounding the Kaaba in Mecca's Grand Mosque on March 6.

Emmanuel Dunand / Getty Images

Workers sanitize the Western Wall in Jerusalem on March 31.

Mandel Ngan / Getty Images

Father Scott Holmer makes the sign of the cross as he hears confession in the parking lot of St. Edward the Confessor Catholic Church in Bowie, Maryland, on March 20.

Patrick Fort / Getty Images

Catholics kneel as Father Norbert Abekan of Notre Dame de la Tendresse de la Riviera in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, is driven by on March 22.

Jim Mone / AP

Father Bryce Evans waits to hear confession at the drive-up confession site of St. Maron's Maronite Catholic Church in Minneapolis on March 30.

Don Campbell / AP

A sign at St. Joseph Catholic Church in St. Joseph, Michigan, on March 30.

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