First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, reopened its doors to the public on Sunday, just seven days after gunman Devin Kelley murdered 26 parishioners in a horrific mass shooting that shocked the world.
The pews that were once situated inside the space were removed and 26 handcrafted chairs now stand in their place, each bearing the name of a victim who was gunned down during the rampage; a rose was also placed on each chair.
While most of the roses were red, one was pink — a stirring representation of the unborn baby that Crystal Holcombe was carrying when she died. A red cross was also painted on the back of each chair.
Footage from inside the First Baptist Church, which has been transformed into a memorial for those murdered last Sunday. pic.twitter.com/rS1aqIvrKy
— Melissa Jeltsen (@quasimado) November 12, 2017
Meanwhile, audio of the church’s staff members reading Bible verses played in the background, as a large wooden cross with a crown of thorns was situated at the front of the sanctuary, The Huffington Post reported.
The church walls, floor and chairs are now all white and the windows were replaced during a stunning renovation that unfolded after law enforcement concluded their collection of evidence following Kelley’s murderous shooting spree.
The renovation process took 72 hours, as workers remodeled around the clock to prepare the sanctuary to be opened to the public just one week after the massacre, with Frank Pomeroy, pastor of First Baptist Church, saying that the effort was made to show that “love never fails,” according to NBC News.
It isn’t yet clear if the church will be destroyed or whether it will remain a memorial but, for the time being, the house of worship will be open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. for those wishing to visit, as HuffPo noted.
Last week, Pomeroy announced that the house of worship will not reopen again at its old site for worship services, though initial plans to demolish it do not appear to be definitive.
“There’s too many that do not want to go back in there” he said, according to The Wall Street Journal. “We will probably turn it into a memorial for a while. We’re playing it day by day right now.”
First glimpse inside First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, which reopened today as a memorial pic.twitter.com/V6o0iINrxX
— Melissa Jeltsen (@quasimado) November 12, 2017
As to whether the building will eventually be torn down and rebuilt, Pomeroy said at the time that the central focus now is on the immediate needs in the church community: mainly, burying the dead and helping those who have been impacted.
The church did hold a touching service on Sunday at another location, an event that came just one week after the tragedy.
(H/T: Huffington Post)