This has been a troubling, tragic week in America. As we prepared to celebrate the birthday, life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., six people lost their lives, thirteen others were wounded and the lives of many others will be changed forever. In the wake of this violence, the words from the title of Dr. King’s book, “Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?” rang in my mind as tears flowed from my eyes.
I know beyond a doubt that millions of people share the pain and feel sad and heartbroken for the people in Tucson, Arizona. Even those of us who have no personal connection with the individuals directly impacted find ourselves wondering what to do next. We can not change the events of the past, but what can we do to help heal the spiritual wounds that result from such a soul shattering action?
President Obama asked these questions during the memorial service in Tucson: “How can we honor the fallen? How can we be true to their memory?” In his response he asked us to “expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully, to sharpen our instincts for empathy and remind ourselves of all the ways that our hopes and dreams are bound together.”
As we continue to pray for the healing of our nation, I pray we will each take a good look at our hearts and strive to become ambassadors of the love ethic preached by Dr. King and presented as a moral challenge to all of us.
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 1 John 4: 7
Rev. Brenda Girton-Mitchell
