Recent gun violence
Recent gun violence
As I went about my day today, I thought about the victims of the violence in El Paso and Dayton. I have prayed for the souls of all who died in the violence, and for the comfort and consolation of the families and friends mourning the loss of a loved one. I prayed for those injured in the shootings and all the folks, near and far, frantically trying to determine the fate of family members and friends.
We may disagree about how we have ended up where we are — easy access to guns, increase in mental illness, unchecked political rhetoric, or the rise of white supremacy groups — but what we cannot disagree about is the impact the violence has had on our society. The loss of life means the loss of a child of God who was created for a unique mission in life. The loss of life means a family is devastated because a daughter, son, father, mother, spouse, grandparent or grandchild will never sit at the family table again and share in the joys and sorrows of family life. For some time now, children fear gun violence in schools and suffer from anxiety; and our businesses, schools and churches pay for additional security in hopes of calming fears.
If we all believe that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are unalienable rights of each human being, then we must all work to protect our most basic right to life. Some may say: all I can do is pray. Yes, we can begin by praying, but we must also work with our local, state and federal leaders to make a change to protect every life.
This was not an ordinary day; it has been a day of remembering and reminding those I encountered that even in the midst of unspeakable violence, we are a people of hope. For the God who created us and redeemed us is with us even when we cannot see Him, or even when we wonder if He is with us.
May our God have mercy on us for not acting to protect the life He created. May God also give us the strength and courage to go beyond our fears to bring about change, and to love and protect the precious gift of life.
We may disagree about how we have ended up where we are — easy access to guns, increase in mental illness, unchecked political rhetoric, or the rise of white supremacy groups — but what we cannot disagree about is the impact the violence has had on our society. The loss of life means the loss of a child of God who was created for a unique mission in life. The loss of life means a family is devastated because a daughter, son, father, mother, spouse, grandparent or grandchild will never sit at the family table again and share in the joys and sorrows of family life. For some time now, children fear gun violence in schools and suffer from anxiety; and our businesses, schools and churches pay for additional security in hopes of calming fears.
If we all believe that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are unalienable rights of each human being, then we must all work to protect our most basic right to life. Some may say: all I can do is pray. Yes, we can begin by praying, but we must also work with our local, state and federal leaders to make a change to protect every life.
This was not an ordinary day; it has been a day of remembering and reminding those I encountered that even in the midst of unspeakable violence, we are a people of hope. For the God who created us and redeemed us is with us even when we cannot see Him, or even when we wonder if He is with us.
May our God have mercy on us for not acting to protect the life He created. May God also give us the strength and courage to go beyond our fears to bring about change, and to love and protect the precious gift of life.
