A viral photo of Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and his wife, R&B singer-songwriter Ciara, praying at a local church has garnered both praise and criticism from social media users.
According to CBN News, on Tuesday, the photo was reposted to the celebrity news Instagram account The Shade Room.
The image, which has over 860,000 likes, shows Wilson on his knees and Ciara with her hands lifted in worship.
"A picture of CiCi & Russell praising Jesus in the Church has gone viral," The Shade Room wrote in the caption. "A couple that prays together, stays together! love to see it!"
Facebook user Taylor Martin, who initially published the photo, said that a guy standing next to him captured the couple praying at church.
"When Russell Wilson and Ciara are at ur (sic) church bowing to Christ, I didn't take the pic the guy next to me did. I just think it's fire to see. Gods (sic) so good," Martin captioned the image.
While some people found the image endearing, others called it an invasion of privacy.
"I think this is very invasive and disrespectful. People should be able to praise God without people sneaking pics," American singer and songwriter Queen Naija commented on The Shade Room's post.
"Kinda Invasive, but maybe this helps ppl put God First in your Marriage," another person wrote.
Wilson and his wife, who have been married since 2016, are outspoken Christians.
In a June interview with E! News, the couple shared that their faith has been essential in their relationship, especially as they raise their children.
"In the Bible, it says, 'Faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains,' and so I just hope that whenever they have challenges or are maybe in doubt, they are able to dig deep and find that inner faith and know that that will allow them to prevail," Ciara said.
"The world can turn you all over the place, so you have to have something to stand on, to have something that's true and solid, and I pray that our kids will be able to have that and understand how powerful and meaningful that is for their lives," she concluded.
"One of our favorite scriptures is 'Faith, hope and love, but the greatest of these is love,' and hopefully, we can give them as much love and demonstrate that daily for them," Russell added.
The Wilsons are the parents of 4-year-old daughter Sienna and 10-month-old son Win. Ciara also has another son, 7-year-old Future Wilburn, whom she shares with Future, a rapper whom she was previously engaged to.
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Jason Kempin/Staff
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.