It is with great sadness that I once again call on all West Virginia residents to join with the world in prayer for the victims of the horrendous school shooting that took place yesterday in Uvalde, Texas.
As Catholics, we are called to pray for those who have died and assist in healing the deep wounds of those who mourn. But we must now do more than offer prayers and support. We must encourage concrete action in the hopes that never again are school children the target of these heinous acts of violence.
It is obvious that mental health issues, unchecked anger, and rage are part of the problem and can lead to people committing unspeakable acts of evil and violence, and we must address these issues, but it is equally apparent that those perpetrating these terrible atrocities are able to do so because they wield powerful weapons that are able to kill and maim dozens of people in just seconds. We must do more as a society to limit the availability of these types of weapons; especially to those whose sole purpose is to use such weapons to commit atrocities against our brothers and sisters.
I call on everyone to pray for an end to this evil and implore both gun owners and our elected officials to work together and take action to ensure the safety of our children, our schools, our churches, and our communities.
Mark E. Brennan
Bishop of Wheeling-Charleston
