COLUMBUS, Ohio — Families gathered on Sunday for egg hunts and treats while some headed back to their places of worship for the Easter Holiday. For many, this was the first time in three years the holiday services were held.
"The amazing thing is that Christianity is supposed to be practiced communally, it’s who we are,” said Pastor Melanie Forsythe-Lee, of Life Vineyard Church of Columbus. “Christians gather together, we worship together, we journey in our lives together … like that’s the essence of our faith and it was really hard to practice our faith by ourselves in our home."
Community is a common theme churchgoers say fills them up this Easter holiday.
“It’s something you don’t realize you miss until it’s gone and you really need to have that connection with people,” said Tim Beeker, who attends the church with his family.
Janice Sammeper traveled all the way from Akron in northeast Ohio to visit the Life Vineyard Church of Columbus, a church she says has changed her life.
“It’s a beautiful feeling to be back here with family and loved ones who genuinely love you unconditionally," Sammeper said.
The church did zoom calls, live-stream services, outdoor services and Easter bunny drop-offs to keep spirits high, but members expressed there’s nothing better than worshipping together.
“We did everything we could to try to keep the community together, but today feels like a really big day," Pastor Forsythe-Lee said.
Other church leaders share this Easter is also a time to rebuild. Minister Paul Griffith at Discover Christian Church in Dublin said the pandemic hit the community hard, but they're excited momentum is finally picking up as they work to get people back to church.
“With the church, things kind of fell apart. We lost about half the people coming to church during the pandemic,” said Minister Griffith. “We’re now getting back to about 65% of the number of people getting back to church.”
For the Williams family, the church is home, and it’s good to be back.
“You can see everyone’s smile, you can feel everyone’s presence and see how they’re doing and be with God and everything, especially on Easter Sunday, it’s a wonderful feeling,” said James Williams.