NASHVILLE (WSMV) – Easter Sunday services were celebrated across Music City. Watson Grove Missionary Baptist Church held its first in-person worship service for its members at an outdoor service along the Cumberland River.
Members had to pre-register for the Easter service titled “Resurrection on the River” where members brought lawn chairs and worshiped together in the Cumberland Park Amphitheater.
“So people will be able to see other people’s faces. I hear people. I try to go through the day without crying because I haven’t seen some of these people for a year, for about a year in two months,” said Pastor John Faison Sr.
Church leaders have worked hard to plan this service as safely as possible. Screenings, wearing masks and social distancing were key to the Sunday morning field service. This reflects how far the city has come since the start of the pandemic.
“Even in the midst of it all, there is still joy available. That’s really what the Christian faith is to me. It is a space of joy that is cordoned off and protected in the midst of all the chaos and challenges.
Dr Alex Jahangir from the metro covid-19 task force attended the service.
“We need to get more of our minorities in our city vaccinated. We need to get more young people vaccinated, which happens by being intentional and having leaders people trust to get them there,” Dr Jahangir said.
Despite the turmoil the pandemic has presented this past year, the Pastor wanted a series of messages to be drawn from this experience.
“It is a marriage of brotherhood, but also of empowering, informing and preparing people to ensure that the future is better than the past,” said Pastor Faison.
Watson Grove Missionary Church will hold a COVID-19 vaccination clinic on Tuesday at its Nashville location from 3-5:30 p.m. Click here for more information.