Dear Church,

“The Lord proclaims: A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation. It’s Rachel crying for her children; she refuses to be consoled, because her children are no more.” -Jeremiah 31:14-16.

On Gun Violence Prevention day at the State House, I said that we were turning our prayers into action, because that was what our faiths require of us. I joined others in saying that something is terribly wrong when a parent sends their baby to school, and has to worry that child will not return home, because they have been the victim of a mass shooting. It is a very clear sign that all is not as it should be.

Yesterday, I cried, and prayed the words from the prophet Jeremiah yet again as the news of another school shooting from Nashville, TN reached me. How long O Lord? It does not have to be this way.

Church, there is a Gospel imperative for those of us who follow Jesus to bring an end to the epidemic of gun violence in America. Our worship of guns, and the belief they can save us can become a form of idolatry. There is a moral imperative for those of us who seek to build foundations of peace and proclaim the worth and dignity of every human being. This work is not optional. We must proclaim with one voice: not in our name, and not in Jesus’ name.

In this final week of Lent as we journey toward Holy Week, when Jesus was publicly killed by the hand of violence, I pray we return to his call to us to be peacemakers in the midst of it. The Church united must be part of the solution. I pray it is so.

Blessings,

Rev. Heidi