Around The World, Faith In The Summer Of COVID-19 | PHOTOS
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1/20
Catholic Priest Omar, Center, Leads A Prayer As Soldiers Pause From Disinfecting The Christ The Redeemer Area, Currently Closed During The New Coronavirus Pandemic In Rio De Janeiro, Brazil,
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2/20
People Pray As Paper Lanterns Float Along The Motoyasu River In Front Of The Atomic Bomb Dome
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3/20
People, Who Are Poor And Homeless, Wait Outside The Missionaries Of Charity, The Order Founded By Saint Teresa
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4/20
Ultra Orthodox Jews, Followers Of The Hasidic Sect Of Shomrei Emunim, Wearing Protective Face Masks Amid Concerns Over The Country’s Coronavirus Outbreak
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5/20
Women Wearing Protective Face Masks To Help Prevent Spread Of The Coronavirus Mourn During An Annual Ceremony Commemorating Ashoura At The Saleh Shrine In Northern Tehran, Iran
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6/20
Indian Hindu Devotees Prepare To Immerse An Idol Of Goddess Durga In The River Hooghly
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7/20
A Shiite Muslim Boy Beat His Chest With Others During A Muharram Procession, In Lahore, Pakistan
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8/20
A Nepalese Girl Stands For A Photograph In Front Of An Idol Of Swet Bhairav Statue
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9/20
Rabbi David Mason Leads The First Sunday Communal Prayer Service Which Was Streamed To His Congregation From The Muswell Hill Synagogue Parking Lot In London
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10/20
A Kashmiri Shiite Muslim Shouts Slogans After Being Detained By Police As They Attempt To Take Out A Religious Procession In Srinagar, Indian
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11/20
Pilgrims Crawl In Front Of The Holy Church Of Panagia Of Tinos, On The Aegean Island Of Tinos, Greece
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12/20
An Activist Of Rashtriya Bajrang Dal Participates In A Ceremony To Mark The Groundbreaking Ceremony Of A Temple Dedicated To The Hindu God Ram In Ayodhya
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13/20
Orthodox Nuns Wearing Masks As A Measure Of Prevention Against The Spread Of The Coronavirus Walk In A Procession To Bring The Icon Of The Virgin Mary
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14/20
Liza Durasenko, 16, Prays During A Rally In Support Of President Donald Trump
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15/20
People Visit St. Savior In Chora Church, Known As Kariye In Turkish, In Istanbul,
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16/20
A Kashmiri Prays Inside Jamia Masjid, Or Grand Mosque, In Srinagar, Indian Controlled Kashmir,
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17/20
Nuns Wave To Pope Francis As He Recites The Angelus Noon Prayer From The Window Of His Studio Overlooking St. Peter’s Square, At The Vatican
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18/20
Israeli Arabs, Some Wearing Protective Face Mask Amid Concerns Over The Country’s Coronavirus Outbreak, Enjoy The Day On The Beach During The Eid Al Adha Holiday In Tel Aviv, Israel
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19/20
Catholic Priest Luis Carlos Ayala Wearing A Mask Amid The New Coronavirus Pandemic, Hands Communion To A Parishioner During A Mass At A Drive In In Chia, Colombia
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20/20
Mohammed Moussa Prays On A Makeshift Bed Outside His Home, Destroyed In The Aug. 4 Explosion, In Beirut, Lebanon
The man stood in front of the Christ the Redeemer statue in a hazmat suit, gloves, respirator and goggles. Two soldiers wearing face masks bowed their heads solemnly. Over a dozen more in full-body gear paused from disinfecting the popular tourist site overlooking Rio de Janeiro’s skyline and beaches.
About the only clues that the man was a Roman Catholic priest leading the soldiers in prayer were his arms-wide gesture, mirroring that of the iconic hilltop statue, and the pale yellow liturgical stole draped over his head-to-toe personal protective equipment.
This is what faith looks like in the summer of COVID-19 — or winter, of course, in Rio and other Southern Hemisphere locales. In scenes captured this month by Associated Press photographers around the world, religious services, sacred ceremonies and holiday observances took place with people trying to keep themselves and each other safe amid an unabating pandemic.
