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Thursday’s tragedy isn’t the first time The River Church in Durham has dealt with the deep sorrow death from gun violence brings.
“We have been affected by the senseless gun violence that happens in our community more than I care to acknowledge,” Bishop Ronald Godbee, The River’s senior pastor, told The News & Observer.
A 21-year-old man in the church community lost his life to gun violence last month, and a 14-year-old girl in the spring, he said.
Now, as the church is still reeling from such devastating deaths in the past few months, they are thinking through how the congregation can help their neighbors suffering from the same situation, after five were killed and others injured in a mass shooting Thursday in Raleigh. They hope to “just be hands to hold and ears to listen,” he said.
“We offered prayers and condolences, as well as offered an opportunity to be seen by anyone on our health and wellness team,” Godbee said. “We have to be prepared to address the psychological trauma that our community is left to deal with after a tragedy of this magnitude has taken place.”
Durham’s Sikh Gurudwara of North Carolina and Morrisville’s Hindu Society of North Carolina are encouraging their attendees to pray in community and individually for families and loved ones of the victims.
“It’s a strange concept for most of us that guns are so easily accessible in the US, and largely there is support for tighter gun control,” said Kulpreet Singh, the gurudwara’s public relations chair. “One of our college students mentioned how important it is to seek mental health care, especially for the young.”
Manisha Patel, director of the Hindu Society’s board of directors, when reached by email, offered two praying hands emojis and a mantra for “the families and lost souls.”
“Om Shanti,” she said. A message of peace.
Some faith leaders are responding in frustration: “I would be sadder if I weren’t so mad, and I would be madder if I weren’t so simply, utterly exhausted by the stalemate that exists in this country over guns,” said the Rev. James Kubal-Komoto, senior pastor at Unitarian-Universalist Fellowship of Raleigh. “I stand before you today without any answers. … All I know is that we must not give in to despair.”
In Victory Church’s livestreamed service, Senior Pastor Mitch Horton shared a personal story about the shooting.
An avid long-distance cyclist who lives four miles from the Hedingham neighborhood, he prepared to ride his usual route on the Neuse River Trail after coming home from work, Horton said. But when he got home, he decided against it.
“I look back at the time stamps at when I would have left — and I’ve done it so much, hundreds of times, that I know exactly where I’d be, how long it takes me, yadda yadda. I would have been right where all that happened, about 10 minutes after five,” he said. “I just had to say there, ‘But by the grace of God go I.’ So don’t take your life for granted.”
In downtown Raleigh’s Edenton Street United Methodist Church, the Rev. Will McLeane led a prayer of lament at the beginning of the service.
He prayed for the Hedingham community, for the city of Raleigh and for all our leaders. He read the name of each victim individually as five candles were lit in front of a cross on the altar: “Lord, let your perpetual light shine on these saints,” he said. Those gathered responded, “Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.”
McLeane’s sermon was about resilience, even when we may feel we lack the energy to deal with repeated problems, such as gun violence. He said faith can equip and nourish us to “take one step closer to justice, even when violence happens again.”
The N&O reached out to spiritual leaders across the Triangle representing various faith traditions, but only a few could reply in the tight, Sunday morning turnaround. Some folks included are faith leaders for The N&O’s staff members.
Thad Ogburn and Josh Shaffer contributed to this report.
This story was originally published October 16, 2022 1:58 PM.
Kimberly Cataudella (she/her) is a service journalism reporter for The News & Observer.
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