How Long, O Lord? How we can respond to mass shootings
How long, O Lord?
The confused, hateful, and evil acts of destruction that took the lives of men and women at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh and two men in a Kroger supermarket in Kentucky bring us to our knees and pierce our hearts.
Pastors, leaders, apprentices of Jesus: we can choose to lean towards the lost and embrace the ever present lament: “where was God during this tragedy?”
This Christianity Today article from February offers some practical wisdom for how our churches can respond with the posture of a chaplain.
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“With every shooting, Americans become more vocal in their heartbreak and outrage, demanding more from people of faith than blanket statements about “thoughts and prayers” with whatever city suffered the latest incident. Questions inevitably arise over “where was God during the tragedy?”
“People will be turning to Christian leaders for guidance in the aftermath of the senseless violence that happened yesterday,” said Jamie Aten, HDI founder and executive director.
“One of the biggest challenges pastors will face is the pressure to explain why someone would do something like this. Yet, no answer will take away the pain and heartache,” he said. “What will be most helpful to those struggling is to meet them in their suffering by creating space for lament, providing comfort, encouraging community, and reminding others of the hope we have in Christ.”
Such efforts have been shown to reduce the severity or longevity of trauma following a mass shooting.”
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To date, there have been 297 mass shootings in the United States.