“The decision is up to you, but we do recommend you ring them 28 times, which would include the killer and his mother in the count,” says a release from diocesan communications director Ruth Meteer.
“We think praying for all souls best reflect Christ’s message of forgiveness and love for all, and that we should especially pray for those souls who may need our prayers the most.”<
Read it all.
Thank you — I totally agree. It has saddened me to keep seeing “26 victims” repeated over and over. The mother, too, was a victim. Blaming her for what her son did and keeping her from remembrance and prayers is wrong, IMO. I don’t for one minute believe that she had any idea he could or would turn violent. And we can’t pin it on the video games, either. Or music. Or any other media that commonly get the blame when mass shootings happen.
And this young man was mentally ill. A healthy 20-year-old doesn’t do this and it doesn’t seem to be a case of temporary insanity, at this point. We know he had severe, long-standing problems — the type that makes one typically withdraw, not confront. His soul needs prayers.
Sure, it’s much easier to mourn for and remember the little children but all life is precious in God’s eyes — even that life which was different and went so terribly wrong, in the end.