‘God’s hand, untouched.’ A photographer finds light in the darkness of a burned Latter-day Saint church

As police in Grand Blanc, Michigan, concluded their investigation into the tragic shooting and fire that claimed the lives of four people during a Sunday service at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, they called upon a local photographer to capture the scene’s profound aftermath.

Stephanie VanWagoner was struck by what the flames had spared.

“What really stood out to me is what was untouched,” she said in an interview from the police station.

VanWagoner accompanied the police to the site on Oct. 8, 10 days after the attack. By then, time had stilled the chaos, leaving behind only the burnt remains of what once was a sacred place of worship.

“I wanted to tell the story in a way that people would understand what happened here,” VanWagoner said. “The beauty of what survived in that fire, that remained untouched. The strength, the grace of it all. I just don’t feel like I have words to describe it.”