Pictures of Church

I have a kind of naughty hobby of taking pictures during church.  I only started this after I got my Ipad, and could do it in stealth mode.  Now people are recognizing that I do it occasionally, so sometimes they pose.  :)  I know it might be a little disruptive, so I only do it occasionally, but I really treasure these photos that I have taken during our meetings.

I should explain that here in China we are part of a "virtual" congregation.  The members who live here in Wuhan come to our house and we all listen in together.  We dial in to Skype, and join the conference call.  Speakers are chosen from among the congregation that includes almost every province in China.  In bigger cities, where there are enough members to meet together, they have normal, live meetings.  But the rest of China has members scattered here and there in many different provinces.  But there aren't enough people in each location to hold a church meeting.  So we have our "Skype" services.

In our situation, because we have Priesthood holders in our location, we have been given permission to also have the sacrament.  Our living room has a nice wooden table in the center of the room that serves as the sacrament table.  Other locations do the same.  Those without Priesthood holders are asked to ponder on the meaning of the sacrament during the time they would normally have the sacrament administered to them.  During the meeting, we are given an 8 minute break to administer the sacrament in our different locations.  Then we resume with our meeting.  We have talks given by different members of our congregation, and when it is their turn to speak, they just unmute their microphone.

So here is a compilation of some of the pictures I have taken during our meetings.  I won't continue this when I return home to the States, but something just makes me feel I can't stop doing it here!  :)  Some of these show people at different times throughout a two year span, so for example, you can see the baby at different stages of development.  Oh, and a lot of people take off their shoes when they come in our house, per Chinese tradition, so you might see some bare feet.  :)  Also, the last picture is one I took of my Aunt and cousin in America.  Our class had just ended, so I quickly snapped this picture.  My Aunt, as you can see, was in a wheelchair and on oxygen.  My cousin volunteered to pick her up for church each week.  He sat with her the entire time, and helped in whatever way she needed.  She died only a few months after I took this picture.  It's a reminder to me of my cousin's self-less service, and the love he showed to our Aunt.