Prayers for V.T.; peace in our communities

This tragic story is still unfolding, but as of today, there are 32 confirmed killed, and a couple dozen more injured in the s that took place on the Virginia Tech campus yesterday morning.

May we all join together in praying for the families, friends, students, faculty, staff and administration of Virginia Tech as they mourn these tragic losses.

Prayer is the beginning of the journey to healing. These families and students will never fully heal from these emotional and psychological wounds, but my prayer is that they may find comfort in God and one another as they remember, struggle to cope, and hopefully seek to help others in need.

What can we do in our communities??

Already we hear the media machine ramping up its propagation of the culture of fear... Safety and improving rapid response is certainly one of the sad lessons that can be learned from this tragedy. For me, though, it is not the only lesson. Each time something tragic like this- or the situation at Columbine happens, I find myself asking questions like:

How did this person become so enraged and feel so desperate that he would plan such a horrible massacre and unleash such rage?? Had he struggled with mental illness for a long time? Was he abused? What were the warning signs if there were any? What were his 'cries for help'?

We can pray, of course- which is always a great place to start.

Then we can re-dedicate ourselves to working together to make our communities places of peace and healing.

Here in my home city of Philadelphia (I actually live in an adjoining suburb, but I consider Philly my home), there has been a rising problem of gun violence and of alarming proportions- More than 500 killed last year alone.

Some of my dearest friends in the city are out there on the frontlines, seeking to mentor troubled youth, help people struggling to find work and get back on their feet. We can all make a difference- and we don't even have to go into the cities, although there certainly are people in need of hope there too. All around us there are people who feel lost, discouraged, disenfranchised, dejected. We can help make a difference in their lives. We cannot rescue everyone, but making the difference even in the life of one person can make a positive difference exponentially in our world!

I conclude with a prayer for peace from Francis of Assisi- let's not just read and say these words, but also seek to live them more boldly:

Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.

O, Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;to be loved as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.